Eddie Hearn 'very nervous' ahead of Anthony Joshua vs. Francis Ngannou: 'This is Godzilla and King Kong'
01/03/2024 18:00
Eddie Hearn admits that he's nervous ahead of Anthony Joshua's fight with Francis Ngannou.
Last year, Ngannou nearly shocked the world when, in his boxing debut, he lost a contentious split decision to lineal heavyweight champion Tyson Fury that saw Ngannou drop Fury in the third round. Now, Ngannou will make his sophomore outing against Joshua, the former two-time unified heavyweight champion, when the two face off in a 10-round boxing match in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. And with his fighter now facing down the lineal MMA heavyweight champion, Hearn acknowledges that he's a bit nervous about the fight.
"This fight is going to tell us a lot, because every time I talk to you I get very scared and I get a little tingling in my stomach, because I know you think he could win this fight," Hearn told Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour when asked about Ngannou. "When I went to the gym the other day to see AJ, he's taking this like this is a Tyson Fury times 10. He's taking this fight so seriously.
"Frank Warren talks about the jeopardy in this fight. That's a great word for this fight, because if you get beat, you've gotten beat by a 0-1 guy. But when Turki Alashikh, his excellency, says the winner of this fight will go on and fight for undisputed against the winner of Fury-Usyk — that, for us, is a dream chance. We chased that for so long, and I can't tell you how much I believe AJ is going to beat Francis Ngannou and then he's going to beat the winner of Fury-Usyk and become the undisputed heavyweight world champion."
While Hearn has been quite complimentary of Ngannou, the Matchroom Sports CEO initially dismissed Ngannou's chances in boxing entirely. Even after the Fury fight, Hearn maintained that Ngannou over-performed, but that Fury simply was not prepared for the fight. And with the fight less than two weeks away, Hearn still believes that, though it's not helping his nerves.
"A week on Friday, two giants will meet in the ring in Riyadh," Hearn said. "And when you say giants, this is the first time AJ has fought an opponent that out-sizes him. This guy is huge. ... When I turned to him at the press conference and started talking to him and then turned to AJ, it was like a cruiserweight and a heavyweight. This is a real threat. And when those two come together, press conference, weigh-in, in the ring in Riyadh, this is Godzilla and King Kong. This is two ginormous men, and anything can happen in this fight. You land one shot on the chin and it's over.
"And whilst I tell you I'm very confident AJ is going to knock him out — and I am — you'll also see a promo dropping in the next couple of days and it made me think, maybe this is just one of those guys you hit on the chin and nothing really happens. So it might have to be a systematic breakdown of smart boxing. But I still stand by what I tell you every time I see you: I do not believe he can walk into elite level boxing and beat these guys.
"Against Fury, was it a great performance? Yes. What it an under-prepared Tyson Fury? Yes. Was it a confused Tyson Fury about what he was getting? Yes. We've got 10 rounds of footage to dissect. That's much better than none. But I'm nervous. Very nervous."
Ngannou, of course, believes Hearn should be nervous. The former UFC heavyweight champion is renowned for his punching power and dropped Fury, who has one of the legendary chins in heavyweight boxing.
Joshua has had questions about his own durability since being famously upset by Anthony Ruiz in 2019, and Ngannou vowed to test that durability when the two face off. But while Joshua may not have Fury's chin, Hearn believes he has something better for this fight.
"In a tactical battle, with a good standup boxer like Anthony Joshua, you should be much too good for this guy. Mentally one of the big challenges in this fight is the mental aspect. You must not fear Ngannou, and that's very difficult not to do," Hearn said. "But you've got to be aggressive, you've got to be smart, you've got to be vicious in your attacks. What you can't do is let him feel like he can walk you down, get you in the clinch, overpower you. He didn't want to be that active against Fury. He liked the breaks. You've got to box at a rhythm and a tempo that will actually tire him out, because I promise you if this is a fast-paced fight, by rounds four, five, six, this fight will be over. He won't be able to stand up. Fury let him rest."
Then again, it might not matter, because even Hearn admits that while Ngannou might not be the most talented boxer in the world, "The Predator" seems to have a way of bending the world to his will, and he has the tools to do it again.
"One thing also, which we can't necessarily fathom, is the confidence that fight gave Francis Ngannou," Hearn said. "That's what scares me more. Because this guy is just built different. He has no fear. He should actually be half-petrified that he's fighting a guy that has boxed 10 years at the top level. But he's not. He's thinking [holds up fist], 'One of these on the chin and it's all over.'"
Ngannou and Joshua face off on March 8 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
