Hearn doubts Wilder wants Joshua fight, says Jarrell Miller could be next

By Boxing News - 04/03/2018 - Comments

Image: Hearn doubts Wilder wants Joshua fight, says Jarrell Miller could be next

By Scott Gilfoid: Matchroom Boxing head honcho Eddie Hearn doesn’t buy Deontay Wilder’s statement from today saying that he wants to face Anthony Joshua next in the UK, so he says he’s going to be looking to match AJ against unbeaten Jarrell ‘Big Baby’ Miller (20-0-1, 18 KOs) if wins his fight on April 28 against former heavyweight world title challenger Johann Duhaupas.

Hearn says he doesn’t believe that Wilder is serious about wanting the Joshua fight, and yet it was he that said that he couldn’t enter the ring last Saturday night at the Joshua vs. Joseph Parker fight at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Wales. If Wilder had been given permission to enter the ring to hype a fight against Joshua, then that would show that Hearn wants to make the fight.

Wilder says he was informed that he wouldn’t be allowed to enter the ring. I think it’s painfully obvious that Hearn doesn’t want Wilder as Joshua’s next opponent. It’s looking like the 300-pound Miller will be the next guy. That’s not good for the boxing fans, as Wilder is said to have hurt Miller in sparring, according to 50 Cents. He says Wilder gave Miller a concussion in sparring. Joshua isn’t Wilder, so maybe Miller might have a chance against him. The way Hearn is so eager to make the Joshua-Miller fight; I don’t think he sees it as a 50-50 fight.

“Jarrell Miller is in a long line of US fighters making noise for an AJ fight – he’s definitely in contention for that fight,” Hearn said to Fight News.

Miller is said to be co-promoted by Hearn, which makes him the ideal opponent to put in with Joshua. This would be an in house Matchroom Boxing fight for Hearn.

Hearn might as well get it over with and make the Joshua vs. Miller fight. Hearn sounds like he’s really excited at the idea of making that fight. He should just get it out of the way. Once Hearn is done matching Joshua against all the guys that he feels are winnable fights for his guy, then he can eventually look Wilder’s way and make that match.

Judging from his press statement released today, WBC heavyweight champion Wilder (40-0, 39 KO) sounds like he’s very serious about wanting to fight Joshua next. Wilder says he’s even willing to give Joshua (21-0, 20 KOs) home country advantage by coming to the UK to fight him wherever he wants the fight to take place.

Hearn has been talking about wanting to match Joshua against Miller for months now. If there’s a good predictor of what Hearn is going to do in the future in picking out opponents for Joshua, it’s when he talks favorably about a fighter. When Hearn talks up different heavyweights, you can bet that fighter is going to find his way inside the ring with Joshua sooner or later. Miller is a fighter that Hearn has talked favorably of, so it’s not surprising that he’s now thinking of matching him with Joshua.

“AJ’s focus is on Deontay Wilder but we don’t believe his team wants the fight so we have to look at other options,” Hearn said to Fight News. ”If AJ is to fight in the summer and it’s not Deontay, then a win over Duhaupas on April 28 will put Jarrell in a great spot to land a shot at Joshua.”

Hearn talking up a fight between Joshua and the 6’4” ‘Big Baby’ Miller is a big indicator that’s the fight that he wants, not the Wilder fight.

Joshua might want the Wilder fight, but I don’t think Hearn wants any part of that. So, unless Joshua gives Hearn his marching orders by insisting he makes the Wilder fight, I don’t think it happens. Even if Joshua does tell Hearn to make the fight with Wilder, who’s to say that he doesn’t come back to him and say, ‘I’m sorry, AJ, Wilder’s team is being unreasonable. I can’t work with them.’ That’s why Joshua should be in on the negotiations, so he can hear what’s being said back and forth.

If a fighter’s promoter is not making the match-ups that they want them to, then they should be assertive and include themselves in the negotiations. Is Hearn dragging his feet on purpose when it comes to making the Joshua-Wilder fight or it is Wilder’s fault that the fight isn’t being made? The only way to find out for sure is if Joshua includes himself on the negotiations. Also, Deontay Wilder must be given a fair offer as well. You’re not going to get him to agree to chomp change. Wilder has what many boxing fans consider as the most valuable of the heavyweight title belts with his WBC strap. It doesn’t matter that Joshua has more titles. Wilder’s WBC belt is the one that is considered the most prestigious of the titles.

Hearn needs to give Wilder an offer to show him how serious he is in making the fight with the 28-year-old Joshua.

If Miller, 29, doesn’t beat France’s Duhuapas on April 28, then Hearn will have to look in another direction for an opponent for Joshua. He’s probably not going to want to match Miller against Joshua under that circumstance.

Joshua fought like he was afraid to mix it up with Joseph Parker last Saturday night. The whole boxing world saw how timid Joshua looked. Hearn obviously saw what everyone saw with Joshua cringing and running from Parker. That might be the biggest reason why Hearn is dragging his feet at the idea of letting his gravy train fighter Joshua fight Wilder. If Hearn lets that fight happen, it could be all over for AJ. If Joshua loses to Wilder by a vicious knockout, there’s a good chance his fans will be jumping overboard and jumping on the Wilder express.

What was interesting about the Joshua-Parker fight was how at one point in the contest, a tired looking Joshua was able to stop the action himself and take a timeout to have the loose tape fixed on his left glove. Joshua didn’t ask the referee for the timeout. He just took it. It looked like Joshua was doing the officiating, and the referee was just some guy hanging out, pulling Parker off Joshua on the inside when he was helpless. It didn’t look like a fight in the real sense. It looked like Joshua was inside the ring with his trainer helping.

”I think when everyone around you is afraid, it’s going to make you think too,” Wilder’s promoter Lou Dibella said to SiriusXM Boxing Radio show when asked if he believes Joshua is afraid of Wilder. ”Do I think he’s [Joshua] afraid? Justifiably, I got to be honest with you. I saw a lot of stuff in that Parker fight that I think a lot of other people saw, particularly people on the other side of the pond and are hesitant to talk about,” Dibella said.

It was not a satisfactory performance by Joshua against Parker. The referee pushing Parker off him frequently helped Joshua control the fight, because he was able to keep the fight at range without having to worry about being crowded and worked over on the inside. Joshua calling his own timeout to fix his tape, and then referee keeping Parker on the outside, it all looked so bad incredibly bad. It’s surprising that Wilder is still willing to come to the UK to fight Joshua after last Saturday.