In a recent broadcast on TalkSport, Simon Jordan and Eddie Hearn entered a debate about the need for promoters in boxing now that Saudi Arabia’s involvement has shifted the business of boxing.

Jordan said Saudi Arabia’s Turki Alalshikh has the ability to ‘turn their lights off economically’ with reference to Eddie Hearn and Frank Warren. Hearn retorted by suggesting the recent Crawford v Madrimov card in Los Angeles couldn’t have happened without the Matchroom team ‘in terms of the promotional ability, the infrastructure of the TV deals, licensing, dealing with the commission, dealing with the local councils and government in terms of red tape, safety, the drug testing.’

‘Lights Out’ for Eddie Hearn

He summarised by saying, ‘the level Turki Alalshikh requires, it’s not just as easy to do it yourself’, ‘[Turki] wants the ecosystem of boxing to keep thriving, Riyadh Season alone is not going to the keep the ecosystem of boxing alive’.

Jim White chimed in, suggesting since Saudi Arabia’s arrival into boxing, Eddie Hearn and Warren ‘can’t live without him’ where he could indeed live without them. To that, Hearn said, ‘he can’t live without our stable, he can’t live without Frank Warren’s stable’.

Jordan bounced back, citing the fact many big fights have been made since Turki’s involvement in boxing, fights that would not have been made otherwise, arguing, ‘if he can acquire the knowledge to make fights that you guys can’t make, then he can acquire the knowledge to put on the events that you guys put on […] with the scale of budget they have, they can turn your lights out if they feel like it’.

The debate later shifted to the upcoming AJ vs Dubois event in Wembley, with Jordan suggesting AJ’s chin isn’t what it was, to which Eddie Hearn responded that ‘people always look to debate a heavyweight’s chin’ and ‘it’s only really the Andy Ruiz fight which he didn’t have the best preparation’ where he was stopped.

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