Eddie Hearn says Johnny Fisher’s decision to sign with Zuffa Boxing came down to more than just a bigger payday. Hearn said Fisher needed a series of rebuilding fights after the first loss of his professional career, and that’s a product he couldn’t realistically sell to DAZN viewers.
Hearn explained that Fisher’s career is at a different stage now, with confidence-building bouts against modest opposition making more sense than being thrown straight back into difficult matchups.
“Johnny Fischer, rightfully so, by the way, because he’s had a defeat and he wants to have opposition that I would be competitive with,” said Hearn to talkSPORT Boxing. “Because he wants low-level fights to get in a bit of a swing, two, three fights like that. For me, I can’t deliver that product for DAZN because you’d laugh it out of town.”
Hearn said Matchroom’s problem wasn’t that Fisher deserved easier fights. It was that those kinds of matchups wouldn’t satisfy fans watching a DAZN main event.
“If I headlined a show for Johnny Fischer against the guys he’s going to be fighting, I would be ridiculed,” said Hearn. “But you would be prepared to pay for a fight that he will be in because the fight that he is in is not good enough for my product, for DAZN’s product, to put bums on seats, to make people engage.”
Fisher was announced as a Zuffa Boxing signing on Monday, with Everything Boxing reporting that the heavyweight has agreed to a one-fight deal. Hearn suggested the new promotion’s willingness to pay significantly more for lower-risk opponents made the move an easy business decision.
Despite losing one of Matchroom’s best-known British prospects, Hearn said he holds no ill will toward Fisher.
“It’s amazing, and I’m so happy for him because it’s a fight that can go and pay a mortgage,” said Hearn about Fisher.
Hearn’s comments also offer an early glimpse into how Zuffa Boxing may approach developing some of its fighters. While Dana White has repeatedly promoted a “best versus the best” philosophy, Hearn believes the company is prepared to stage rebuilding fights that established promoters and broadcast partners may be unwilling to headline.
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Last Updated on 2026/07/13 at 5:51 PM
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