Frank Warren raised his eyebrows after hearing some of the recent statements from his promotional rival, Eddie Hearn of Matchroom, who aimed criticism in the direction of his ex-content partner, Sky Sports.
Hearn’s company had a content partnership with Sky Sports for many years – but in 2021, Hearn decided to break away from Sky and signed an exclusive content deal with streaming service DAZN, who are making a huge play for subscribers in the UK market.
Sky Sports have since created strong promotional partnerships with BOXXER, Wasserman Boxing and Top Rank.
In recent interviews, Hearn expressed his frustration at Sky Sports, by claiming a lack of coverage for some of the recent Matchroom events that were featured on DAZN – like last month’s bout between Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano.
Warren believes Hearn is now feeling the promotional heat – by not having the guaranteed assistance of a media giant like Sky.
“It’s crybaby stuff, isn’t it? It’s only come from the other side. Now they know what it’s like when you haven’t got that publicity machine banging the drum for you, you’ve got to get out and do it yourself now, you’ve got to get off your ass,” Warren said, according to Pundit Arena.
“It’s called promotion. Welcome to the new world. If you’d done a few shows in the early days, off TV, working hard, then you find out what promoting is all about and then you haven’t got to give tickets away or reduce the prices.”
Former world champion and Sky Sports pundit, Johnny Nelson, also weighed in on Hearn’s statements.
“Eddie left Sky. [He left] to set up his own venture with DAZN so why would you bother?,” Nelson explained to Planet Sport.
“It’s like having a girlfriend and leaving them then complaining about what she’s doing when you’re with someone else. Why is he bothered about what Sky are doing or not doing?”