Eddie Hearn believes Anthony Joshua could retire after three more fights if he’s victorious. Joshua (28-3, 25 KOs) turns 35 in October, and he’s got a risky 50-50 fight against IBF heavyweight champion Daniel Dubois on September 21st in London.
Hearn says Joshua could hang up his gloves if he beats Dubois and then defeats the Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk rematch winner twice. However, Joshua’s chances of winning those fights are quite low, especially if they involve him facing his former conqueror, Usyk.
Joshua’s Retirement After Three More Fights?
Usyk has got AJ’s number, and we’ll probably see a repeat if Joshua faces the talent. Hopefully, there’s a lot of security on hand just in case Joshua mentally snaps after the fight and has a flashback of what happened in the warzone in his previous two encounters with Usyk.
After those three fights, Joshua will undoubtedly be rich enough to walk away from the sport. By the time he finishes those matches, AJ’s net worth will likely be in the $500 million range, and the only reason to stay around would be to see if he can become the sport’s first billionaire. Dubois could wreck those plans by sending Joshua down to defeat on September 21st in their headliner at Wembley Stadium in London.
“AJ would fight anybody. He would be happy to fight Ruiz again. He’s not going to be around forever,” Eddie Hearn said to BoxNation about Anthony Joshua’s not likely to continue his career for much longer. “Three more, four more, five more, or six more.”
Hearn was asked about the possibility of a trilogy fight between Joshua and Andy Ruiz, who is fighting this Saturday night against Jarrell Miller.
It would be better for Hearn to hold off a third clash between those two until Ruiz proves himself against a top-grade contender. He’s been out of the sport for too long, and the fans aren’t going to be impressed with him beating 36-year-old Jarrell Miller. You must do better than that to peddle a trilogy match against Joshua to the public.
At least make Ruiz beat someone like Jared Anderson before you pull the trigger on a trilogy fight against Joshua, and even then, it’s a bad idea. I wouldn’t do it if I were Hearn.
Hearn’s Vision for Joshua’s Final Bouts
“The main plan is to beat Daniel Dubois on September 21st and then fight for the undisputed against the Usyk-Fury winner,” said Hearn about Joshua. “No, I don’t think he [Joshua] has four or five more years in him, but who knows?”
Hearn is right. The money Joshua will get from his next three fights will be so huge that he won’t want to continue fighting. Joshua will be wealthy enough to purchase the Beverly Hillbillies mansion in the affluent Bel Air neighborhood in Los Angeles, which was sold for $150 million in 2019 to Lachlan Murdoch.
“He’s in the best shape of his life, loves his boxing, and is very happy,” said Hearn about Joshua. “So, while that is the case, carry on going. Part of me would like to see AJ beat Daniel Dubois and then fight the winner, Usyk-Fury, twice. If you won those, imagine winning those and then calling it. That would be unbelievable.”
If Joshua wins those three fights, there won’t be anyone left to fight that will bring in the kind of money and publicity that he’d be hoping for. Jared Anderson, Martin Bakole, or Ruiz aren’t big enough names and lack the popularity for Joshua to continue his career.
Hearn’s Own Career and Passion for Boxing
“What me? What else am I going to do? I always told myself mentally that I’m done when I get to 50. 45,” said Hearn when asked how long he intends to stick with promoting.
“It’s like anything. If you love something, why do you want to leave it? It’s unbelievable aggravation. It’s a game full of slags. A 100%,” said Hearn when asked if Riyadh’s Season’s input in boxing has given him more enthusiasm for the sport.
It sounds like Hearn will stay in the sport until old age, and you can’t blame him. His promotional ability makes him built for this game. If he retired, he’d be bored hanging around the house and missing out on all the action.
“It’s given me the opportunity to work with different people. I kind of treasure the relationship with Queensberry and Spencer Brown,” said Hearn. “I’ve never really worked with anyone. It’s always been us against the world, and it’s actually quite refreshing to sit down with people and work with people for the benefit of the sport, for your business, and for your fighters.”
Interestingly, Hearn finds himself working with different promoters with whom he would have never dreamed of involving himself years ago.
“I’m more excited and fresher than I’ve ever felt in the game apart from back in the days when I didn’t have a clue, and it was Froch, and we were just blagging life,” said Hearn.
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