“Yesterday, TKO went around the back again to try and offer Joshua money to do the fight in America,” Hearn told DAZN. “It’s a dirty, dirty game, mate, to be honest with you. It’s made it even harder for them because Josh just ain’t about that. You’ve got an hour and a half to make your decision. Mate, what don’t you understand? I signed to fight in Britain. I want the fight in Britain.”
The 90-minute demand is the major addition to Hearn’s story. A deadline that short would leave Joshua little time to study revised terms, consult his lawyers, or calculate the financial consequences of moving the event from Britain.
It sounds like an attempt to place a large number in front of AJ and force an immediate decision. No amount has been disclosed, but TKO presumably understood that a modest increase would not persuade him to surrender Wembley Stadium, his home support, and the protection Hearn says was written into the signed agreement.
“You can’t buy everybody,” Hearn continued. “Especially the ones who it means something to.”
Hearn said the approach strengthened Joshua’s determination to keep the Fury fight in Britain. The growing public support has also changed the tone of the venue negotiations. A week earlier, Hearn said there was “zero interest” in London and that New York was being treated as the only destination. He now claims Sela has asked him about contacting London Mayor Sadiq Khan to help make the British event possible.
The conflict with TKO has not ended. When asked if Matchroom would take action over the direct approach, Hearn said his team had already written to the company.
“What are you doing?” Hearn said. “You guys are on the New York Stock Exchange. What is this? Just coming around the back trying to bung someone a few quid. Come on. It doesn’t have to be like that. But it’s pushing the fight further away because of their behavior.”
That is the danger behind TKO’s alleged tactic. The company may have believed a quick financial offer would settle the American venue, but Hearn says it produced the opposite response. Joshua is now more committed to Britain, Matchroom has contacted TKO in writing, and the relationship between the parties has deteriorated.
Hearn placed the likelihood of Fury and Joshua fighting in Britain at 64%. That oddly precise estimate still leaves New York in contention, but it is more optimistic than his position a week ago.
The missing financial figure remains fascinating. If TKO wanted Joshua’s answer within 90 minutes, it must have believed the offer was large enough to make him reconsider everything he had signed for.
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