Anthony Joshua has waded into the ongoing feud between Conor Benn and Eddie Hearn, lending his support to the promoter.
Benn, son of British legend Nigel, sensationally announced last month that he was ditching Hearn’s promotional team Matchroom Boxing after a decade-long relationship – leaving for his rival Dana White’s outfit Zuffa Boxing instead.
Hearn has since spoken out about that decision, revealing he was left ‘devastated’ by Benn having guided the British boxer from his 2016 debut to headlining cards and sticking by him after failing two drug tests in 2022.
And on Tuesday another long-term Matchroom Boxing fighter in Joshua showed his support to Hearn.
Uploading to his Instagram story, the former two-time heavyweight world champion shared a picture of him and Hearn dressed sharply.
Accompanied with that was a caption which read: ‘AJ: Did you bring the fire power Eddie?
Anthony Joshua (left) took to Instagram on Tuesday to lend his support for Eddie Hearn (right) after Conor Benn left his Matchroom Boxing for rivals Zuffa Boxing last month
Benn (top) stunned Hearn when he decided to end their 10-year working relationship
‘Eddie: It’s tucked on my waste line mush [sic]
‘AJ: I’ll let you know when I have a clear sight of Connor Benn [sic]’.
When it was announced that he was splitting from Hearn, Benn – who has ambitions of winning the WBC welterweight title – thanked the 46-year-old for standing by him during the tough periods of his career and said he was excited for a ‘new chapter’ aimed at securing ‘legacy fights’ on the biggest stages.
However, speaking to iFL TV after Benn’s bombshell announcement, Hearn claimed he was informed of the decision by the boxer’s lawyer before being refused a phone call with him.
‘Me personally, pretty devastated,’ Hearn said of his reaction to the news. ‘I have had a few days to digest what might happen. It is not often you get shocked.
‘I blame myself. I forgot it was boxing. I just felt the loyalty that we have shown would never ever put us in this position.’
Daily Mail Sport reported that Hearn is thought to have lent Benn £500,000 following the collapse of his 2022 match-up with Eubank Jr, which came about due to his positive tests.
Hearn added that he ‘misjudged the character’ of Benn by feeling the ‘loyalty’ he had shown him ‘would be enough to talk it through or get close to a number’.
He continued: ‘It feels a little bit of a wasted few years. I gave a lot… I believed him and I backed him and I never gave in when he was done, out. Loaned him hundreds of thousands of pounds, but yeah on we go.’
‘I just think the way it was done was very very wrong,’ he added. ‘But everyone is different. Some people, loyalty really matters, other people maybe not so.
‘The way it played out to receive an email from the lawyer and then to ask for a call and not the willingness to have it, you just lose a bit of your soul to it.’
Benn’s first bout as a Zuffa Boxing fighter will be against Regis Prograis on April 11 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
