"What was he doing?" - Eddie Hearn shares disappointment in Francis Ngannou for accusing Anthony Joshua's team of foul tactics on fight night

Francis Ngannou was knocked out by Anthony Joshua in emphatic fashion on March 8, with some boxing pundits calling it the most brutal KO in the history of the heavyweight division.

It was the first knockout defeat of Ngannou's combat sports career, and his performance against 'AJ' was in contrast to his superb showing against Tyson Fury in Oct. 2023.

Several days ago 'The Predator' was interviewed by Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, where he stated that he arrived at the arena several hours before Joshua, a tactic he felt was employed to fatigue him.

Eddie Hearn has spoken out for the first time since the Cameroonian's interview when the Matchroom Boxing chairman sat down with iFL TV. Joshua's promoter was asked to share his thoughts on the accusations. He said this:

"I thought it was really disappointing to be honest with you. I really like Francis Ngannou, and I thought in the build up [he was] very respectful. Even in defeat, very respectful. But what he basically said was, he was told to come to the venue an hour before Joshua and these are the games that people play. Well who's playing the games? We certainly didn't tell him what time to go to the venue... To point the finger that people are playing games, and he said it got him tired?! Well, what was he doing?"

Watch Eddie Hearn's interview below from 6:50:

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Francis Ngannou set to return to MMA after stint in boxing

Francis Ngannou was signed by the Professional Fighters League (PFL) following his departure from the UFC in Jan. 2023.

However, the Cameroonian has yet to debut for the MMA promotion, having crossed over to boxing after his initial signing with the PFL. After being narrowly defeated by Tyson Fury last year, 'The Predator' suffered a devastating defeat to Anthony Joshua in March.

PFL CEO Donn Davis has confirmed that Ngannou's next fight will be in MMA, despite the former UFC champion claiming he wanted to remain in boxing.

Davis recently appeared on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani where he said this:

"Now he's coming back early. Will it be as early as July? Maybe. Will it be as late as September? No later. But you'll see Francis now in 2024 in the PFL against [Renan Ferreira]."

Watch Davis discuss Francis Ngannou's MMA return below: