Hearn gave an insight into Joshua’s mindset after his defeat
Eddie Hearn has revealed the details of his first interaction with Anthony Joshua in the aftermath of his defeat against Oleksandr Usyk in August.
Joshua was beaten in the hotly-anticipated rematch by split decision despite a much-improved performance but what happened after the fight in Saudi Arabia became the main talking point.
The 32-year-old reacted angrily to the loss and threw both of his former belts to the floor before taking to the ring with a microphone to give a bizarre – yet emotional – speech.
Joshua eventually regained composure and gave praise to his Ukrainian opponent but Hearn has revealed he lost his temper behind the scenes once more on an emotional night in Jeddah.
“He didn’t want a conversation, it was that sort of vibe,” the Matchroom promoter told the Daily Mail.
“We went back into the changing room and he was extremely frustrated.
“I actually went over to talk to him and to everyone he was like, ‘Leave me alone.’ I said, ‘No, I won’t leave you alone. I’ve got to tell you, you boxed well.'”
Hearn also revealed that he had reservations about Joshua conducting his post-fight media duties and drew similar comparisons to how he felt after Joshua’s defeat to Andy Ruiz Jr.
“It took two hours before we went into the press conference,” Hearn recalled. “One of the hard things for fighters is having to go and do the press conferences and speak after having a fight.
“I didn’t want him to do a press conference, and I didn’t want him to do one after the Andy Ruiz loss because he was concussed, but he’s always insistent on doing it.
“For him, the idea of not being good enough when you get it right was difficult for a winner to accept.”
Despite the defeat, Hearn still remains optimistic for the future and confirmed that Joshua will fight again next year, with plans to go global.
He said: “Now Joshua is in control of his own future. We can fight who we want, when we want, where we want. Let’s go on an AJ world tour.”
Related links:
- Frank Warren dismisses ‘bull***t’ Eddie Hearn theory about Anthony Joshua meltdown
- Piers Morgan labelled hypocrite after calling Anthony Joshua ’embarrassing’ for storming out of ring
- Eddie Hearn hits out at Tyson Fury for ‘talking sh*t’ following Anthony Joshua fight
