Eddie Hearn has revealed the number of tickets Anthony Joshua has sold for his rematch with Jermaine Franklin next month.
There has been much speculation surrounding the commercial success so far of the match on April 1, with fans sharing screenshots of the large rows of seats at the 02 Arena in London still for sale.
When clicking the problem by ESBR boxingHearn admits there are still plenty of tickets left, but he expects the London venue to be at full capacity tonight.
“It was a difficult time. We sold 14,000 tickets on the 2nd, we have a few thousand left – will sell out. The boxers will get their tickets this week, so there won’t be many left.”
“But he needs to make a statement and he needs to get people excited about Anthony Joshua again.”
“We all love him, the whole country loves him, but do they believe in him as a top heavyweight? April 1, we will see.”
Not being able to sell out 02 quickly would certainly be a shock to the system for ‘AJ’, Wembley Stadium and the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff during the early part of his career were packed.
Some believe his decline in popularity stems from his loss to Andy Ruiz Jr at Madison Square Garden in 2019, and was then amplified by two consecutive losses to Oleskandr Usyk .
Next month’s meeting with Franklin is certainly crucial for Joshua, as the defeat will almost certainly end all of his ambitions to become a three-time world heavyweight champion.
The Americans appreciated themselves in the defeat to Dillian Whyte last Novemberso it’s hard for Joshua to lose focus while preparing for ‘The 989 Assassin’.
