📸 Amanda Westcott

Deontay Wilder made an appearance on Richard Poxon’s recent podcast, talking everything from Anthony Joshua to Dominic Breazeale.

Ahead of the announcement for his forthcoming mandatory fight on May 18 in New York, Wilder was in fine voice.

One person who was the subject of much debate was Joshua’s manager Eddie Hearn.

Turning down a huge $50 million offer to fight in late 2018, Hearn was critical of Wilder’s co-manager Shelly Finkel in the media.

This is something which had Wilder questioning Hearn’s maturity as a worldwide boxing figure.

“We felt like they were men of their word,” Wilder told the Poxon Sports promoter on his Boxing Poxcast. “I hold them accountable as I’m a man of my word.

“That’s why I make sure I say the right things. It’s very rare I say things I don’t mean. People feel what I say.

“I took him accountable for his word because he said it (he’d accept $50m) so boldly. They were acting like they was running boxing.

“Well, we going to provide you with what you said. And when we did that, I think they were (acting) like we were calling their bluff. It was like ‘we got them’ and they don’t have no other place to go.

“His media team began to try and scramble something. He said. ‘I’m not going to sell my soul, the UK deserves this fight. I’ve worked so hard building here for this fight’. – Well why did you say you wanted it then?

“Why did you even find the energy to say it (you’d accept $50m) if you didn’t believe that? – Things like that make me want to forget everything. What did we do wrong?

“You asked for $50m and we provided it for you. Now you’re changing your mind? – It don’t make no sense.

“That’s why I can’t deal with Eddie Hearn to this day. They wasn’t straightforward. They contradict, even to their own country. And they are compulsive liars.

“Eddie Hearn is a straight liar, I can’t deal with him. I never want to see him. The only time I want to see him is at the fight (against Joshua).

“You just don’t call my manager names like ‘Shirley Winkle’. It’s like, c’mon bro – how old are you? – You up here trying to make the biggest fight in the world and you talking about ‘Shirly Winkle’?

“That oughta let you know that he wasn’t prepared or ready (for that offer).”







FIRE

On being part of a new era of boxing, Wilder added: “The heavyweight division is alive and well. It’s breathing pure fire.

“This dragon is going to be breathing for all long time. And a can’t wait for there to be one champion, one face, one name, and you know that will be Deontay Wilder.”

Listen to the latest episodes of the Boxing Poxcast with Richard Poxon on Spotify here