Eddie Hearn says boxing needs to move away from mismatches like Canelo vs Conor McGregor and Tyson Fury vs Francis Ngannou
20/10/2023 12:15
Eddie Hearn is not particularly interested in seeing Canelo vs Conor McGregor, instead calling for the end of boxing ‘mismatches’.
Canelo and McGregor have been trading insults on social media recently, with the Mexican saying he would only need ‘one hand’ to win the fight and the Irishman clapped back claiming: “I'll stomp the ligaments out of your knee joint.”
Ultimately, the pair were teasing a potential future fight and while promoter Hearn believes McGregor can hold his own in a boxing ring, this is not the kind of fight he wants to see going forward.
Hearn explained that ‘mismatches’ like this and Tyson Fury vs former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou, which is due to take place on October 28, are bad for the longevity of boxing.
"Look, Canelo obviously deals with all of those guys from very different worlds,” Hearn told IFL TV.
“One thing I'll say about Conor McGregor. He can box.
"Don't forget, he [McGregor] was an amateur boxer, he's got boxing pedigree and, let's be honest, although Floyd Mayweather did with all due respect play with him at times, he still held his own in there. He didn't look like another MMA fighter just out of his depth.
“I think he could fight again and he would actually be in a decent boxing match, McGregor.
“But it just goes back to the product. It’s like Fury vs Ngannou, it’s an amazing event, amazing hype, but you’ll see it’s a mismatch and we’ve got to move away from mismatches.
“Because what happens is, you build the hype and then they get in the ring and people go ‘what a load of rubbish’ and people are let down.
“That will ensure that the longevity suffers, we know we’ve got the product, it’s just about making the right fights.
“It’s not even just making [Terence] Crawford vs [Errol] Spence, it’s about top to bottom making sure it’s a great night of boxing.”
