Hearn slams rival’s ‘50/50’ claims over prospected AJ v Fury bout

BARRY Hearn has warned rival boxing promoter Frank Warren that Anthony Joshua will not accept a 50-50 purse split for a prospective all-British super-fight against Tyson Fury in April next year.

Hearn, head of Joshua’s promoters Matchroom, responded furiously to an assertion from Warren on BBC 5 Live’s Sportsweek programme that the pair would share the proceeds of the big-money bout.

Fury is set to face WBC champion Deontay Wilder in the US in December and it is widely assumed the winner will then open negotiations for a contest to unify the belts early next year.

Hearn, who watched Joshua dispatch Alexander Povetkin at Wembley on Saturday night, declared: “It’s not a 50-50 split against the best heavyweight in the world – you can forget that completely.”

Hearn believes Wilder will beat Fury in December, which would pave the way for what would appear to be a much more straightforward series of negotiations with the American’s camp. And he turned his anger back on the show’s presenter Garry Richardson, adding: “It’s outrageous on national radio to try to agree terms to a commercial fight. You should know better, and Radio 5 should be ashamed of themselves.

“Wilder or Tyson Fury subject to terms on April 13, without a problem in the world – but you [Warren] will ask for a ridiculous amount of money and it won’t be made.”