Former champion Lennox Lewis has criticised the current state of heavyweight boxing.
Lewis is the only person to have held all three titles simultaneously when retiring, and is now frustrated at the way the sport, and in particular his division, is going
Anthony Joshua, Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury seem to be stuck in a three-way stand off.
Fury and Wilder recently went to a points decision that ended in a draw, so a rematch between the two is on the horizon.
However, fans of the division are becoming restless as they want to see Joshua take on a big fight with the natural order suggesting that Wilder should be his next opponent.
Lewis believes the problem lays at the feet of both Hearn and Joshua, as he spoke his mind in a recent lengthy post.
“At Joshua’s trajectory, I expected him to face Wilder in 2018. To my disappointment, those negotiations fell through. I’ve placed a lot of the onus on the ‘A-Side,’ Hearn and Joshua for that fight not happening.
“During that time, when I heard Joshua saying he was in no rush to face Wilder, and might do so in 2019, 2020 or beyond, of course I was shocked at those comments. I understand that boxing is a business, but as a fan, I want to see the best fight the best, when they’re at their best.
“Now I’m not privy to all of the details, and all of the back and forth between the Joshua and Wilder camps, but based on what I’ve heard, my opinion was that Joshua and Hearn needed to step up their game if this fight was going to happen.
“Joshua vs Wilder is the biggest fight that can be made in the division today, and easily becomes one of the biggest in all of boxing."
Lewis has also slammed the way Joshua's team have negotiated the purse of the Brit's fights before, with them offering a set price rather than a percentage of the earnings.
“I thought it was ludicrous that Hearn started off by offering Wilder a pay cheque for the undisputed heavyweight championship of the world, instead of a percentage, especially when you consider that they did a split with Joseph Parker for a unification bout.
“It’s disrespectful to the fraternity of boxing, and the gains we have made getting fighters a larger percentage of what they put their lives on the line, and work so hard for. Too many past fighters, and champions, never came close to earning their proper piece of the pie.
“The game has since changed and fighters now have the ability to earn their proper share. Lets not turn back the clock to a time where the negotiators are reaping most of the benefits on the backs of the fighters.
“I’m not just making a case for Wilder or Joshua’s purse, I’m making a case for ALL fighters who step in the ring. It doesn’t matter who negotiated their contract, at the end of day, the fighters are the only ones who step in the ring, and if things go wrong, are the only ones in the hospital fighting for their lives.“