Carl Froch took a surprise shot at his former promoter Eddie Hearn after labelling Anthony Joshua vs Francis Ngannou a “cash grab.”
Hearn announced on Friday that Joshua had agreed to face former UFC heavyweight champion, Ngannou in Saudi Arabia, with the date likely to be March 8, according to DAZN’s Chris Mannix.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Froch reminded viewers of Hearn’s previous comments when Tyson Fury was set to fight then-debutant, Ngannou last October, in which he described it as “mismatch.”
“Can you remember what Eddie Hearn said about the Ngannou fight when it was announced for Tyson Fury?” the 46-year-old said on Froch On Fighting.
“Eddie Hearn’s done a complete 180 on his original comments saying it’s a cash grab.
“Well this is a cash grab, let’s be honest.
“It’s not a world title fight. There’s a mixed response on social media.
“Some people want to see the fight, like I’ve said it’s decent enough, but it’s not proper heavyweight boxing.”
Ngannou, 37, shocked the world when he dropped ‘The Gypsy King’ in the third round before losing a contentious split decision, a performance which secured him a top 10 ranking with the WBC.
‘AJ’ was linked with potential showdowns against Filip Hrgovic and Zhilei Zhang after forcing Otto Wallin to retire after five rounds in December and ‘The Cobra’ has questioned how a clash with Ngannou helps his aspirations of becoming a three-time heavyweight world champion.
“It’s not a bad fight,” Froch explained.
“They’re both big and strong. Ngannou can punch.
“It’s a fight I’m looking forward to. It’s a fight I could get excited about, but I’m just not sure it should be happening because Anthony Joshua wants to become a three-time heavyweight champion.
“But, where’s the title? The Hrgovic fight is big. That would probably be for the IBF title if that becomes vacant.
“That’s a fight we’ve been talking about.
“The Zhilei Zhang fight. That’s a great fight we want to see Anthony Joshua in.
“We’re getting further and further away from these fights potentially happening if he jumps in there with Ngannou.”
