The negotiating battle lines have been set in the sand - between heavyweight world champions Anthony Joshua and Joseph Parker.

Parker and his promoter, David Higgins of Duco, have lowered their demand to a 65-35 split in favor of the British superstar. After coming down from a 50-50 and then from a 60-40, Parker and Higgins are refusing to go any lower than 65-35.

That doesn't work for Hearn and Joshua, who have not revealed their exact position on the split of the money.

Higgins has warned that unless his boxer is financially taken care of, they will go in another direction by likely fighting Lucas Browne in a big domestic showdown.

According to Hearn, the current terms would give Parker nearly five times his biggest purse to date - and he believes a fight with Browne would kill any possibility of facing Joshua in 2018.

If Joshua (20-0, 20 KOs) vs. Parker (24-0, 18 KOs) comes together, it would take place on a date in March or April and the O2 Arena in London is a frontrunner to host.

"Parker's team have gone public in saying 65-35 and while I won't say what our position is, I can say we are not far off on a deal that would be worth around five times Parker's biggest purse. He should take this; if he doesn't he will face Lucas Browne, which will virtually kill the chance of an AJ fight in 2018," Hearn told Daily Mail.

"But we are certainly closer than we were. We have spoken a lot with their team and we are within touching distance, so it is just about getting all parties happy and agreed. I'm confident we will and the aim would be for the end of March.

"The location could be the O2 and what a great return that would be. Our aim has always been for three fights in 2018 and that means March and the weather means going indoors. The O2 has been great to AJ so it's a strong possibility, if we can get everything else lined up.

"I'm confident we will, so long as they are serious about wanting this fight."