“My offer was less than a sixth of what they offered,” Hearn told Pro Boxing Fans when asked about Fisher’s future. “When they announce the opponent, you’ll see why I’m no match.”
Rather than trying to keep Fisher, Hearn said he encouraged him to take the deal.
“Walk, swim or crawl as fast as you can to the Zuffa office and sign that contract,” Hearn said.
Hearn suggested the level of opposition attached to the offer was one of the reasons why Matchroom could not justify it. He said the proposed fight simply didn’t have the commercial value needed to support that type of purse.
“If the Zuffa offer was half of what it was, I wouldn’t match,” Hearn said.
The Matchroom promoter insisted he bore no ill will towards Fisher for pursuing the opportunity and said the heavyweight should do what is best for his career.
“This is a brilliant opportunity for Johnny Fisher, and he needs to grab it with both hands,” Hearn said.
Fisher fought last December, stopping Ivan Balaz in four rounds in Monte Carlo after suffering a fifth-round stoppage loss to Dave Allen in their rematch last May.
Hearn indicated that Matchroom had different plans for the heavyweight’s development, saying the fights Fisher wanted next were not events he could call realistic under the company’s business model.
Elsewhere in the interview, Hearn briefly touched on the ongoing dispute regarding Conor Benn and manager Keith Connolly, claiming an offer included a $250,000 payment in exchange for no further criticism of Benn or his team. Hearn rejected the idea outright.
