Eddie Hearn believes that the winner of the Anthony Joshua vs. Francis Ngannou heavyweight clash on March 8th could face the victor of the February 17th undisputed championship clash between WBC champion Tyson Fury and IBF/WBA/WBO champ Oleksandr Usyk without needing to wait for them to have a rematch.
This would be a straight shot for the undisputed Joshua-Ngannou winner without them waiting for the Fury vs. Ngannou rematch.
Hearn says fans will press the Joshua-Ngannou winner to immediately take on the Fury-Usyk winner, particularly if Joshua and Fury are victorious in those two fights.
Hearn’s Bold Statement
He says His Excellency Turki Alalshikh will “want to deliver for fans worldwide” and make it so that the Fury vs. Usyk loser will step aside so that fans can see Joshua or Ngannou battle for the undisputed.
“I feel that he struggles to give AJ the credit that he deserves,” said Eddie Hearn to Boxing Social about Lennox Lewis not being in favor of Anthony Joshua fighting Francis Ngannou, with the winner being allowed to compete for the undisputed heavyweight championship.
Undisputed Dreams
“You can’t say a guy that has dropped Fury and in many eyes beats not him is not credible as an opponent. I told Lennox that one of the reasons we’re taking the fight is because His Excellency has told us that the winner of that fight wins the winner of Fury-Usyk.
“So, we get a straight shot at undisputed, and if Fury beats Usyk, which I hope he does, and we beat Ngannou, you got self-made arguably in the history of the sport.
“You know how things work over there,” said Hearn when asked if the Joshua vs. Ngannou winner will need to wait until after the Fury vs. Usyk rematch before they get to challenge for the undisputed championship.
The Rematch Clause and Fan Pressure
“You know if Fury beats Usyk and Joshua beats Ngannou, the whole world is going to go, ‘Oh my God. It’s AJ-Fury, undisputed. So, yes, there’s a rematch clause, and people have got to be respected and contracted.
“But also, you know the vision of His Excellency. He’s going to want to deliver for fans worldwide the biggest fight of our generation, and it’ll be right on a plate in front of him. But Fury has got to beat Usyk first and AJ has got to beat Ngannou. As you saw with Wilder against Parker, things can happen,” said Hearn.
