Joshua-Wilder: Hearn To Meet With Haymon, Finkel - Talks DiBella

By Radio Rahim

Promoter Eddie Hearn of Matchroom Sport, who promotes IBF, IBO, WBA heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua (20-0, 20 KOs) has confirmed to BoxingScene.com that he's going to have a meeting on Thursday with Al Haymon and Shelly Finkel - the management team behind WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder (39-0, 38 KOs).

Hearn says the meeting is the first step in making Joshua vs. Wilder unification for 2018.

"I'm sitting down with Shelly Finkel and Al Haymon. Those are two of the three or four managers that he's got. But I actually reached out to Deontay, a friend of his did that I know, and I said 'just confirm to me, who should I talk to.' And he said Shelly Finkel and Al Haymon, so they are the people that I reached out to and the meetings start on Thursday," Hearn told BoxingScene.com.

Over the last few months, Hearn has traded words with promoter Lou DiBella, who promoted the several of Wilder's most recent fights.

According to Hearn, DiBella is not a decision-maker in these negotiations - but he doesn't rule out the possibility of DiBella being involved in the fight as a co-promoter on behalf of Haymon.

"I have a lot of respect for Lou DiBella," Hearn explained. "Lou DiBella promotes the shows that Deontay Wilder happens to box on. So he's not involved in the decision process, he's not involved in the negotiations.

"I'm not saying that he's not part of the team, because loosely he might be. Lou is a promoter who promotes shows that Al Haymon will tell him who's on.... like Deontay Wilder.... 'Lou, he's going to fight there and you're promoting, you're the promoter.' He won't be involved in the discussions, but he may be involved in the fight, as a co-promoter.... I don't know, it depends on what Deontay and his team want to do. It's not a case where I want to be the sole promoter - I don't care about that stuff."