Eddie Hearn says he has reached out to MMA star Francis Ngannou’s entourage to begin discussions over a potential fight against Anthony Joshua.
The Cameroonian gave an odds-defying performance against WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury in Saudi Arabia last Saturday, knocking down the Gypsy King in the third round before being denied victory by a controversial split-decision.
Joshua previously snubbed a potential showdown with Ngannou but promoter Hearn feels the situation has now changed and is keen to ramp up talks with the former UFC champ.
Speaking to Boxing Social, Hearn said: ‘I’ve not spoken to AJ about the Ngannou fight. Last time I spoke to him [about it] he wasn’t interested because he didn’t think it was credible and he was focused on the world heavyweight championship.
‘But Ngannou beating Tyson Fury makes it very credible.
‘So you can’t on one hand say, “Ngannou is this new force in the heavyweight division” and then he does that to Tyson Fury and he’s not credible.
‘I like the fight because I think AJ wins comfortably.
‘So if they’re interested in that fight, my advice to Anthony Joshua would be to consider that fight.
‘I actually messaged Ngannou’s team yesterday [Thursday] just to say, if they’re serious about the fight, let’s discuss it.
‘We’re planning AJ’s next six to 12 months, if they’re interested in the Anthony Joshua fight we should start those conversations now.’
In another interview with the BBC, Hearn suggested the fight could take place in Africa: ‘As we start to plan AJ’s next six to 12 months we just want to know if that is an option.
‘We could have that event in Saudi Arabia or other countries in the Middle East. Africa sounds incredible – can they come up with the money to do it? I don’t know.
‘All of a sudden that fight between two giants, they’re carved out of stone, it becomes a massive fight. We’re definitely willing to consider it.’
MORE : Mike Tyson makes Fury-Usyk prediction after Gypsy King’s scare against Francis Ngannou
MORE : Tyson Fury no longer represents heavyweight boxing after ‘shameful’ performance against Francis Ngannou, says Zhilei Zhang
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