It doesn’t really matter if Hearn thinks that or not - Joshua calls the shots and if he wants Fury next then it’s up to Hearn to make it happen. It’s a risk after two hard camps and losses but he’s still a massive draw and the Fury fight would be huge. He won’t want to risk missing out on the fight.
What possible future fights is the money coming from though? Say AJ beats Hrgovic and Wallin, who are both ranked fighters but not a big draw or a big threat. Then what? He's marketable for a big fight, but against who? Fury and Usyk will be gone and the division is done for a few years. He might as well take his shot now against Fury and see what happens. It'll still make a load of money and if he makes it even competitive (he doesn't have to win), then a rematch would be the most marketable fight around.
If Fury fights AJ next a rematch wont happen if Fury wins IMO. Any other fight next year has to be Usyk, or he will be called for not fronting that one. There wont be a rematch clause on the Fury side. AJ needs to decide what he wants, money or legacy. Right now he has the former, but not the latter. A defeat to Fury and he is done for me. He will have the bank balance but not much else. If I were him I would be refocussing my career on a shot at titles again down the line. Go and get back that aggressive streak we saw early in his career and build on your skills with a new trainer. I would take two fights now to get back on it, rebuild a bit, and wait and see what Fury and Usyk do about fighting each other. Fury beats Usyk for me. Then where do all those belts go?
Another defeat and Joshua is sliding into Fraudley Harrison territory (not really but it's not a great look). 3 defeats in a row and he has nowhere else to go. I want to see Joshua v Fury, but it'll be a one sided fight and won't last long
Why won’t it last long? The only fighter Fury has ever battered is Wilder who literally can’t box. If it happens, I’d put good money on Fury winning by points in one of the most boring fights ever seen.
AJ loses to Fury he's only failed to defeat arguably the two best fighters on the planet. He's still the next best, no reason to retire if he wants to carry on.
Any idea what time the ringwalks are? I've seen nothing in their previous fights to suggest GGG might be stopped, but I don't think it's as competitive this time. Cancelo by 6 rounds.
It's a fair point and I think it'll take its toll on skills, I just don't think he'll allow himself to be stopped. I'll watch it, but it's not a fight I needed to see again at this point to be fair. The first 2 results were legitimate in my view and GGG can only have gotten worse since then.
GGG an all time great for me. This looks a tall order, but sometimes the greats make things happen. Only thing is Canello is a levels fighter. He is probably too strong, but GGG has got the better of him once before IMO. Overall Canello on points, then he wants Usyk, but would take some making. Big ask after Bivol, but is money fight.
Genuinely looking forward to the fight tonight. My heart says Marshall by stoppage, my head says Shields on points. My really cynical head says Marshall gets a really questionable decision or a dodgy stoppage. In the other big fights I don't think there's any surprises on the cards. Wilder by stoppage and Haney wide on points.
I've no idea if Shields is anywhere near as good as she claims to be... seems odd she's not known like a Katie Taylor if so. Looking forward to it
