By Barry Holbrook: Eddie Hearn says a wealthy Far East businessman has emerged and made a money offer to stage the mega-heavyweight clash between Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury in his country.
It’s unclear what the actual bid is from the person, but it’s believed that it’s over $200 million. Saudi Arabia is said to have been in the lead position to stage unification bout between 3-belt champion Joshua and WBC champ Fury (30-0-1, 21 KOs).
Joshua and Fury have already signed the fight contracts. Hearn hints that the rich businessman’s country isn’t far from Macau.
Now the only thing left is the location and the date for the Joshua-Fury fight, which could be revealed soon if the offer from the mystery wealthy far East individual is legitimate.
Hearn states money isn’t an issue with this person, as it would be a trophy for him to bring the Joshua – Fury fight to his country.
Eddie is quite clear that Joshua’s match against Fury, which he says is the biggest in boxing, must happen in June or July. He’s not going to allow it to be pushed into November or December.
“All I will say is it’s in Asia. Not Macau but not far away,” said Hearn to the Dailymail about a huge site offer to stage the Joshua vs. Fury fight. “But this one was just well out there.
“And it’s a realistic option; money is not an issue with this guy. Commercially it’s a bit strange, but it’s not about that. It’s a trophy asset to say, ‘This is the biggest event in the world.'”
This is great news if this individual can come up with the site fee to bring the Joshua-Fury fight to his country. Boxing fans want to get the fight announced as soon as possible, and it looks like it will.
Hearn has other options if this offer turns out to be a mirage. He mentions the Middle East, Saudi Arabia, and Singapore have shown interest in staging the AJ vs. Fury mega-fight.
“That’s the mindset of an individual who wants to bring it to his own country,” Hearn continued. “It’s not about selling tickets; it’s not about government investment. It would him saying, ‘I’d be paying for it.’
“There’s a number for the fight; you hit the number, you get the fight, and the number was not an issue for this individual,” said Hearn.
It’s unclear why Hearn is calling it a “bizarre approach” from the wealthy Far East businessman. Was the conversation that Hearn had with the person an odd one or just the location surprising him a little?