“Top Rank Are Completely Finished”: Eddie Hearn Lashes Out at Promoter Bob Arum

Over 50,000 fans filled the Estadio Akron on May 6 to watch their hometown idol take a true Brit challenge. The gate reportedly brought in roughly $1 million. Additionally, the ‘Canelo’ Alvarez and John Ryder fight managed to make pay-per-view sales in the vicinity of 220k to 235k. Hence, for a good reason, promoter Eddie Hearn finds it disturbing when he is considered a laughing stock from businesses that fared poorly compared to what he achieved recently!

The much-hyped match between Devin Haney and Vasiliy Lomachenko did a PPV business that stood at around 150k! However, Top Rank’s Bob Arum had never minced his words regarding Matchroom Sports’ Eddie Hearn. He rates the Englishman “a joke” in the United States. The slanging match between the two promoters could be traced back to a couple of months when Tyson Fury took on Derek Chisora.

Eddie Hearn ‘matches’ out to Bob Arum’s ‘joke’

Arum, whose Top Rank promotes Fury in the US, openly decried Hearn’s projection of the PPV sales the fight would generate. The Matchroom honcho anticipated roughly 400k PPV subscriptions for the contest. Finding it outlandish, Arum said, “Eddie Hearn doesn’t know crap. Eddie Hearn is like a joke in the United States. He puts his nose in everybody’s business and doesn’t know what he’s talking about….”

The nonagenarian doesn’t seem to have changed his views. Colm McGuigan of iFL TV asked Bob Arum about Hearn’s latest statement on taking over the game regarding promotions and cited the example of Super Middleweight Edgar Berlanga joining his stable. The renowned promoter who took care of Muhammad Ali in the past said, “You know, among the boxing people in the United States, Eddie is a joke, really a joke, a clown… even uh, Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy on the same platform has outshone uh Eddie...”

Now it was the turn of the ‘English Lion’ to return the favor. Referring to Arum’s interview to iFL TV on his handphone, Eddie Hearn replied, “I like ‘braggadocious. What I can’t understand is that everyone in America thinks I’m a joke. I promote Canelo Alvarez. We just did 50,000 in Guadalajara [for the John Ryder fight]. I did Canelo-[Gennadiy] ‘Triple G’ [Golovkin] last year. I did Canelo-[light heavyweight titlist Dmitry] Bivol. We sold out Madison Square Garden with Katie Taylor.”

So he took up the Haney-Lomachenko fight, the biggest fight Arum did ‘for years, and year, and years.’ Then he asked people whether there was any fight Top Rank promoted that did better, “What’s the last big fight Top Rank done? Who can answer that?” Finally, as the discussion wavered around Fury matches, Hearn gave the instance of the upcoming bout between Teofimo Lopez and Josh Taylor on June 10.

According to him, all that Top Rank has managed so far is sales of 4k seats at Madison Square Garden. He said, “Top rank [is] completely finished. Bob Arum calls me a joke, and what was it braggadocious not being funny dumb over [the] end of story ESPN contract gone.”

Read More: “AJ’s Back in Camp”: Eddie Hearn Shares Vital Information About Anthony Joshua’s Next Fight

Do you agree with Hearn’s statements on Top Rank and Bob Arum? Do share your valuable thoughts and views with us in the comments section below.

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