Simon Jordan has sent a message to Eddie Hearn, imploring the promoter to learn from the success of the likes of Jake Paul – or risk being left behind.
Paul has been at the forefront of wave of “crossover boxing” which has, in many instances, generated numbers far beyond those of more traditional shows over the past 18 months.
Speaking on Talksport, Jordan warned the likes of Hearn and Bob Arum they need to “wake up and smell the coffee” with regards to the building of fighters’ profiles.
“Jake Paul right now, unbelievably, is a king maker.”
“Eddie Hearn, Bob Arum, Shelley Finkel and all these other guys are going to have to wake up and smell the coffee because that coffee is going to go cold on their watch. They’ll see opportunities being taken away, then you’re going to start to see fighters not needing promoters.”
“That’s unless they evolve, and start thinking about the communication methodology in the digital space.”
Paul’s bout at the weekend against Tommy Fury is tipped to be one of the largest commercial fights of the year thus far, with good pay per view figures expected on both sides of the Atlantic.
Hearn actually promoted ‘The Problem Child’s professional debut against AnEsonGib back in 2019, however has since said he will not have any involvement in crossover boxing moving forward.
The availability of tickets for Anthony Joshua’s return to the ring against Jermaine Franklin at the 02 serves as a stark reminder of the gap in interest between traditional boxing and influencer shows – KSI sold out the same venue in less than a fortnight for his fight against UK rapper Swarmz last August.