Matchroom Promoter Eddie Hearn has responded to Carl Froch’s criticism of Anthony Joshua’s next contest, where the two-time heavyweight champion will face former UFC sensation Francis Ngannou.
Ngannou gave Tyson Fury one of his toughest fights when they met back in October, flooring ‘The Gypsy King’ in the third-round and being unfortunate to lose a split-decision to the WBC champion.
Now, Hearn has confirmed that Joshua will take on the Cameroonian, opting for the crossover clash which was labelled as a ‘cash grab’ by Froch.
Another option could have been a bout with Filip Hrgovic which would likely be for a world title, but in an interview with MMA Fighting, Hearn defended the legitimacy of Ngannou being a worthy challenger.
“Previous to the Fury fight, it wasn’t a fight that he [Joshua] was interested in. Obviously, we just boxed a guy in Otto Wallin that gave Fury a tough time.
“He cut him, I think he had forty-eight stitches, the fight should’ve been stopped and Otto Wallin should’ve won that fight, but it is what it is.
‘AJ’ went out and it was a mismatch, he demolished him, and I believe that we’re going to do the same here [against Ngannou].”
Hearn went on further, directly addressing the comments made by Froch.
“That performance over Tyson Fury was the moment that made this fight credible and I felt like he beat Tyson Fury, if he didn’t, it was a round either way.
“So, you can’t really say that he is not a credible opponent, I heard Carl Froch and others say that this is a ‘cash grab’. No, this is a dangerous fight, ‘AJ’ has a lot to lose here.
“Coming off of the Wallin fight, in a wonderful position to go and fight for the IBF world title, which we hope will happen after the Francis Ngannou fight, but there is a lot of jeopardy in this fight.”
Joshua-Ngannou will take place on March 8th in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, before Joshua is expected to face Hrgovic for the likely-vacant IBF crown.