Eddie Hearn has opened up about how Anthony Joshua reacted to potentially fighting Francis Ngannou, revealing that he was actually offered the fight before Tyson Fury took it on.

With Joshua now officially fighting Dillian Whyte next month, his attentions remain in boxing, but for his long-time rival Fury, his eyes are on the former UFC heavyweight champion, as they will share the ring in October.

However, things could've been entirely different, with Hearn revealing that AJ was actually offered the Ngannou fight before The Gypsy King.

What did Anthony Joshua say about fighting Francis Ngannou?

Hearn has revealed in a recent conversation with talkSPORT that Ngannou came to him looking for a future fight with Joshua, however, the British boxer was not interested in the slightest.

Hearn claims that Joshua said: “Absolutely no interest at all, I wanna become heavyweight world champion again, I've got no interest in fighting Francis Ngannou."

Joshua recently lost the WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, and IBO heavyweight titles to Oleksandr Usyk in September 2021, before failing to reclaim them in a rematch in August 2022.

The comment from Joshua shows a determination to regain these titles and a drive to potentially become undisputed heavyweight champion by eventually unifying the titles at this weight division.

Boxing's heavyweight division

Fury could have unified the titles in a fight against Usyk, but opted to fight Ngannou instead. Many fans will urge Fury to fight Usyk following his fight in Saudi Arabia as the clamour to witness this bout will only get louder.

Joshua is clearly planning to work his way back into title contention and understands that a victory is required when he fights Whyte on the 12th of August. Should AJ be successful, it is believed that he will then look to fight Deontay Wilder in December.

Fans have been calling for Fury and Joshua to meet in the ring to determine who the best current British heavyweight is, however, both camps have seemingly always shied away from that particular showdown. Fury has retained his WBC heavyweight title in his last three fights and will like for this to continue until his retirement.

Joshua knows that his reputation needs rebuilt following his three recent defeats. Following recent comments from Carl Froch questioning the legacy of Joshua, the Brit would be determined to ensure that there are no further questions when he does decide to hang up his gloves.

Before Joshua can dream about retiring as the undisputed heavyweight champion, he needs to overcome Whyte, a man that will have similar ambitions. This fight will be the second between the pair following their initial fight in December 2015.

Joshua and Whyte are now in a last chance saloon for their boxing careers, both know that a defeat would likely see the end to any ambitions of becoming a heavyweight titleholder once again.

Joshua has been questioned in the past about his will to fight opponents of similar pedigree, however, these words from Hearn demonstrate the drive and understanding that the Brit knows he must fight the likes of Wilder, Fury, and Usyk to ensure that he does become the undisputed heavyweight champion before he retires.

Joshua was once viewed as an unstoppable force, and he will want this portrayal of him to once again become the image in which pundits and fans view him for his boxing career, with his three defeats being a small hiccup.