By Keith Idec
NEW YORK – Eddie Hearn is certain Anthony Joshua will be devastated once the reality of his professional defeat sinks in.
Joshua’s outspoken promoter also senses that the wildly popular superstar is somewhat relieved now that he has lost. Ruiz’s stunning, seventh-round stoppage Saturday night cost Joshua and Hearn’s company, Matchroom Boxing, a lot of money, most notably for a showdown with WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder.
Hearn believes, however, that this loss also will reignite a fire within the former IBF/IBO/WBA/WBO champion.
Fellow Brit Callum Smith, who defended his WBA super middleweight title on the Joshua-Ruiz undercard, had that very discussion with Hearn in the staggering aftermath of Joshua’s shocking technical-knockout loss at Madison Square Garden.
“And I do think,” Hearn said, “again Callum Smith said to me, ‘It seemed like I think there may be a little bit of relief that the pressure’s gone now.’ And I do think that he will come back stronger because I think there was so much pressure on him, I think a part of him might say, ‘Oh, I’m the challenger again.’ Don’t get me wrong, he’ll be devastated that he’s not the champion. But I think the pressure is always on him. He’s just a kid from Watford.”
The 29-year-old Joshua (22-1, 21 KOs) built himself into a phenomenon never before seen in British boxing after winning a gold medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.
The 6-feet-6, 245-pound fighter won the IBF title in just his 16th professional fight. He went on to pack Wembley Stadium in London and Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Wales, twice apiece.
His epic brawl with Wladimir Klitschko in April 2017 was awarded “Fight of the Year” honors by numerous outlets and cemented him as a huge mainstream star in the United Kingdom. Joshua became so popular within the UK that thousands of British fans traveled to New York to help sell out Madison Square Garden for Joshua’s United States debut on Saturday night.
Hearn noticed that pressure building on the heavily favored Joshua all the way up until referee Michael Griffin stopped his fight against Ruiz one minute and 27 seconds into the seventh round.
“It’s because he can’t go anywhere without getting mobbed,” Hearn said. “He can’t live a normal life. And that’s still gonna be the same. But at least now he don’t carry the burden of the unified world heavyweight champion, this and that. He loves the sport, he loves to train and he loves to learn. And I think the reaction from him in the ring, although he was definitely slightly concussed, was almost like, ‘I got beaten by a better fighter tonight.’ And, ‘Damn it!’ ”
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.