Eddie Hearn has defended Anthony Joshua after his antics following Saturday night’s heavyweight title defeat by Oleksandr Usyk.
Despite a performance that was much improved from his comprehensive defeat by the same opponent at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium 11 months ago, ‘AJ’ could not regain the WBA (Super), IBF, WBO and IBO belts on a critical night in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia as he suffered a third professional defeat that leaves his place among the elite of boxing’s blue-riband division in some peril and wrecks dreams of a lucrative all-British undisputed showdown with WBC champion Tyson Fury.
Joshua has faced swift criticism for his shock reaction to losing via split decision in his biggest bout on a career-defining evening, with the Briton throwing down two of Usyk’s belts and storming out of the ring before being coaxed back and grabbing the microphone for an expletive-laden outburst that many felt robbed his opponent of a deserved moment on his crowning night.
However, Joshua’s promoter Hearn quickly defended ‘AJ’, insisting that his behaviour was purely borne out of devastation at another loss that leaves his boxing future likely shrouded in considerable uncertainty.
“The reaction from AJ - he’s a human, so much pressure. He exploded, he was devastated,” the Matchroom chief told Sky Sports.
“He’s a competitor and a man. He’s [Usyk] the pound-for-pound No1. They asked me [about the score], I thought it was close. I thought 115-113. I had it very close. Maybe AJ one round up after the ninth. A great performance from Anthony Joshua.
“They’re both tremendous fighters. [Tyson] Fury is a clever man, he could’ve fought Usyk, he chose not to. AJ was desperate to win the fight. He lost a split decision to the pound-for-pound No 1. He needs to go back, rebuild, get the frustration out, but also be happy.”
