Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn dismissed the idea of Anthony Joshua taking a fight against the retired 41-year-old Andre Ward.
Hearn states that the former super middleweight and light heavyweight champion Ward (32-0, 16 KOs) wouldn’t produce the “numbers’ commercially that Ward’s team thinks it would. He states that Ward was one of the best fighters in his generation, but it was “a while ago.”
Ward’s Lack of Appeal
The fighters that Hearn is focused on for Joshua, Jake Paul, and Tyson Fury, would be massive commercial draws, making AJ a lot of money. That’s what the 35-year-old Joshua wants at this late stage of his career, the biggest paydays possible.
‘SOG’ Ward hasn’t fought since 2017, and that’s a long time to be inactive for a fighter that was never one of the big PPV attractions when he was fighting. It’s not like Mike Tyson coming back after 20 years out of the ring.
Ward wasn’t a massive star when he was fighting, and his last two contests against Sergey Kovalev in 2016 and 2017 were ugly to watch, fights involving a lot of clinching and wrestling by Andre. It was not eye-pleasing for fans to watch, and both fights had controversy surrounding the outcome.
Targeting Paul and Fury
“We’re negotiating with Nikisa [Badarian] and Jake Paul about the possibility of doing that fight. The Tyson Fury fight. Now Andre Ward is calling him out,” said Matchroom chairman Eddie Hearn to Australian Boxing Central, giving his thoughts on the retired 41-year-old former two-division world champion Andre Ward calling out Anthony Joshua.
The fight between Joshua and Jake Paul is being targeted for early 2026. Hearn hasn’t said who, if anyone, AJ will fight next in 2025. Although Fury was seen training with his dad this week in front of ‘Big’ John’s caravan wagon, it’s questionable whether he’s interested in fighting Joshua this year. So, technically, Joshua would be free to fight Andre Ward, but financially, it would not sell compared to the fights that Hearn is eyeing.
“For me, I don’t think that fight [Ward] is as big as some people think, mainly from Andre’s team. Andre was an amazing fighter, one of the best of the generation, but it was a while ago,” Hearn said about Ward.
Andre should have come back a long time ago if he wanted to get the lucrative fights against stars like Joshua. That’s his mistake.
A Mismatch in Marketability
“Obviously, when we’re looking at Jake Paul, Tyson Fury, and these kinds of fights, I think of what Andre Ward might expect to make in that fight,” said Hearn. “I think they would be quite disappointed in the commercials of that fight. I’m just being honest. So, it’s not even something I’ve looked at with him [Joshua].
“I know Joshua would take the fight, but I think when it spits the numbers out, it won’t be quite what they seem,” said Hearn about a clash with Ward. And, obviously, when we’re talking about a Jake Paul fight [it’s a much bigger one].”
