What Eddie Hearn said to Anthony Joshua moments after Deontay Wilder’s big knockout loss.

Eddie Hearn had a message for Anthony Joshua after they just witnessed a bumper payday go up in smoke when Deontay Wilder suffered yet another brutal loss, this time to Zhilei Zhang who thumped him to the canvas in brutal fashion Saturday in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Wilder looks far removed from his prime years as a heavyweight when he engaged Tyson Fury in one of the greatest three-fight boxing rivalries in the division’s history, as he’s now lost twice in a row — to Joseph Parker by lopsided decision, and now to Zhang by fifth-round knockout — both fights at the Kingdom Arena.

This is What Hearn Told Joshua After They Saw Zhang KO Wilder

Wilder is not the same fighter he once was, and never will be again, Hearn said

Wilder’s recent run is a stark contrast to his 40-fight winning streak in which he had knocked down every opponent he had ever faced in the ring. Since a three-fight rivalry with Tyson Fury, in which he lost twice and drew once, Wilder has beaten Robert Helenius in a single round but dropped a unanimous decision loss to Joseph Parker before Saturday’s fifth-round knockout to Zhang.

Considering the resurgence of Anthony Joshua, who has four wins in a row since back-to-back defeats to Oleksandr Usyk, the levels between the Brit and the American have never looked wider.

Speaking to Boxing Social, Joshua’s promoter Hearn, who marked Wilder as Matchroom’s team captain in the 5 vs 5 event against Frank Warren’s Queensberry Promotions, said it’s “a personal decision” for Wilder whether or not he consider retirement.

“He’s shown in the last two fights that he’s not the threat that he used to be, and he’s got to find the reason why. Does he not have it anymore? I don’t know.”

He then referenced part of a conversation he had with Joshua.

“I said to AJ tonight, ‘For a long time, people feared Deontay Wilder. No one fears him anymore’.”

Hearn continued: “AJ went through a little bit of that at one stage, they used to be petrified of AJ, now they’re petrified again. For me, it’s a personal decision for Deontay. He tried, tried to convince himself, tried in the ring … but just couldn’t do it. I just wonder whether he’s the same fighter that he was.”

In a separate interview to iFL TV, Hearn said that Joshua “was surprised with Wilder” and the American’s performance.

Anthony Joshua vs Daniel Dubois at Wembley Stadium is an Option

Eddie Hearn mulled over the options for his heavyweight fighter Anthony Joshua

As the Joshua vs Wilder fight looks less likely than it perhaps ever has in history, one fighter who arguably deserves the big-money bout with AJ is another British heavyweight called Daniel Dubois, who defeated Filip Hrgovic to potentially set-up at money-spinning showdown at Wembley Stadium in London.

“I thought [AJ] thought Daniel had done really well,” Hearn said.

“Hrgovic had imploded a little bit, not sure how good his fitness was. But Daniel was a train, and walked through a lot of shots. He grew in confidence, and I thought he did fantastic tonight.”