By Keith Idec

NEW YORK – Deontay Wilder doesn’t think Anthony Joshua really wants to fight Wladimir Klitschko.

The WBC heavyweight champion claimed Wednesday that Eddie Hearn – whose company, Matchroom Sport, promotes Joshua – forced Joshua into accepting an April 29 fight against Klitschko. Just 18 professional fights haven’t properly prepared Joshua for facing Klitschko, according to Wilder.

“[Hearn] pushed him into this,” Wilder told a group of reporters during a break in the trial for his lawsuit against Alexander Povetkin in Manhattan. “Of course. Come on, man. Joshua didn’t call Klitschko out. Hearns did that. [Hearn] is like the new PlayStation, with the VC goggles, and Joshua’s just a fighter.”

A crowd of roughly 90,000 is expected to attend the Joshua-Klitschko clash at London’s Wembley Stadium. That doesn’t matter to Wilder (37-0, 36 KOs), who is certain Joshua would’ve benefitted from gaining experience prior to this type of fight, despite that Klitschko (64-4, 53 KOs) will be 41 and fighting for the first time in 17 months the night he opposes Joshua (18-0, 18 KOs).

“Most definitely,” Wilder continued. “David Price in the making. Look what happened to David Price. Don’t misword me on it. The way they structured David Price, moving him so fast, the whole England was behind him, when he wasn’t really proven for real. He wasn’t no killer. He ain’t really fought no killer. But they had him as the biggest thing in England. And look who come along? How old Tony [Thompson] was? Forty-something years old.”

Price was 15-0 (13 KOs) when aged American contender Tony Thompson stopped him in the second round of their February 2013 fight in Liverpool, England, Price’s hometown. Thompson stopped him in the fifth round of their immediate rematch, too.

The 33-year-old Price (21-4, 18 KOs) has been stopped twice more since the Thompson rematch, including a seventh-round technical knockout defeat to Germany’s Christian Hammer (21-4, 12 KOs) on Saturday in London.

Joshua generally is viewed as a better fighter than Price, but Wilder still considers this steep step up in competition to be a mistake.

“Joshua needs time to develop,” said Wilder, who’ll face Gerald Washington (18-0-1, 12 KOs) on February 25 in Birmingham, Alabama. “Of course. Tell me one fight that he done fought that would put him ready for a Klitschko.”

That’s why Wilder is so certain Hearn had more influence in choosing Joshua’s next opponent than the IBF heavyweight champion.

“I think it’s Eddie Hearn moreso than Joshua wanna fight these guys,” Wilder said. “Eddie Hearn is making a killing off of these fighters. He knows what he’s doing. When you have a promoter that even before your fight you’ve got another damn fight lined up, come on, man. The boy don’t hardly get no kinda time off and break.

“When you have a fighter that loves to fight and loves to be active, I would love to be in that position. But when you have a fighter … I don’t think Joshua likes to fight that often like that. It’s moreso Eddie Hearn. He do like, ‘Well, let’s do it. Let’s do it.’ Eddie always got down who I’m fittin’ to fight, got the TV network, the money and everything. He’s making a killing. So when the time comes, I think he don’t have no choice but to fight.”

The 27-year-old Joshua is about a 2-1 favorite over Klitschko, who hasn’t fought since England’s Tyson Fury (25-0, 18 KOs) upset him by unanimous decision in their November 2015 fight. The odds aside, Wilder wouldn’t bet on Joshua.

“My heart goes for Joshua, but my mind is with Klitschko,” Wilder said. “I don’t think Joshua’s ready for that. I don’t think they’ve prepared Joshua for that. Let’s face it – England is known to hype their fighters up. You 1-0 in England, and they love you. And I love that. I love that they have the energy and they’re behind their people. I wish America was the same way. But unfortunately, they wait till you get to the very, very top, and then that’s when everybody wants to come around and show love. Over there, it’s not the case. And I love them for it. I’m happy for him on that note. But as far as when you fittin’ to fight a Klitschko, someone who’s very experienced, that done been through every situation possible, probably every style there is possible, I think it’s gonna be a difficult fight for him.

“And their styles complement each other very well. Klitschko’s very intelligent, and he’s a counter-puncher. Joshua, even though he’s young, he can punch as well. But he don’t have no flexibility or nothing. Klitschko loves fighters like that. He love ‘em. The only reason Tyson Fury beat Klitschko is because he was awkward, the way he would move. He was agile, mobile and hostile. Klitschko is like tight. He’s a robot.”

Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.