Matchroom Promoter, Eddie Hearn, has responded to criticism from some within boxing after two of his stars were on the wrong end of upsets this past weekend.
Katie Taylor picked up the first defeat of her career as her Irish homecoming was spoiled by Northampton’s Chantelle Cameron. Meanwhile, another Irish fighter, Gary Cully, who Hearn has previously labelled as a threat to the lightweight title, was brutally stopped by Jose Felix on the undercard.
Since the event, Hearn revealed that even Conor McGregor questioned his matchmaking, and in an interview with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, Hearn has explained that he can’t win when it comes to choosing opponents.
“I just think the hypocrisy of boxing is unbelievable. It’s, like, everybody moans that the fights aren’t tough enough, that the challenges aren’t big enough, and then when a fighter gets beat, it’s, like, ‘Awww! She shouldn’t really have taken that fight!’ It’s like when AJ boxed Usyk. Probably, if you want to keep him safe, if you want to avoid dangerous fights, he should have vacated the belt.
“f you’re in this sport for legacy, if you’re a competitor, this is just what happens. The amount of people today that have said to me — and Conor was one of them after the fight — ‘Why’d you put Gary Cully in with that guy?’ It’s, like, that guy’s lost three out of the last four. He lost to Tyrone McKenna, he lost to Sandor Martin. If you are a world class fighter, you beat Jose Felix. Yes, it’s dangerous, he’s a bit of a puncher — so what? What are you gonna do, never fight a puncher?”
Taylor looks set to get the chance to avenge her defeat, making clear her intentions of activating a rematch clause. However, the bout could take place under different terms, with Cameron’s team keen on running it back at 135lbs.