There is no contract, no place, and no contract made. Hearn made it clear that the situation had been overblown, explaining that only preliminary talks had taken place and nothing had progressed beyond that stage.

The promoter has indicated that recent claims regarding location and timing are premature, arguing that the process has not yet reached the point where a date or venue can even be seriously discussed.

Some of Hearn’s frustration likely stems from reports from Gareth A. Davies who claimed the Fury-AJ fight had been “signed” to Netflix. Hearn had to go on a media trip to debunk this, which explains why he’s going back to basics.

“Gareth Davies made a gigantic jump. Kalle (Sauerland) also made a gigantic jump,” Hearn told the media.

Hearn appears to be trying to manage expectations in a year when his biggest star (Joshua) is dealing with a personal tragedy and his biggest potential payday (Fury) is on the verge of being irrelevant if Makhmudov starts to get nervous.

“There is absolutely no agreement between AJ and Fury. There is no contract signed. No venue has been agreed. There is absolutely nothing,” Hearn said.

“We don’t even have a proposed agreement on a date, place, anything. Just conversations about how we’re going to get to that fight.”

Venues such as Wembley, Croke Park and Riyadh have been mentioned, but these are options rather than decisions and there is no formal structure behind them at this stage.

Hearn also indicated that Joshua’s next move will likely come before any fight with Fury is finalized. The working plan remains to return in July, assuming Joshua fights first and then re-enters negotiations for Fury. No opponent was identified, and names circulating publicly were not part of internal discussions.

It makes sense why Hearn’s energy seemed to have waned a bit. There’s a lot of “wait and see” stuff going on these days, and he’s clearly tired of responding to rumors that have no basis in fact.

The fight between Tyson Fury and Arslanbek Makhmudov will take place on April 11 at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. This is Fury’s first fight in 16 months since he “retired” following his defeat to Usyk.

Hearn’s lack of enthusiasm is probably due to the fact that Makhmudov is a powerful and hazardous puncher. If Fury loses or looks terrible, the value of the “mega fight” against Joshua will drop significantly. Until the results come back on April 11, Hearn can’t plan anything with certainty.

Joshua’s situation is complicated by more than just boxing. He is coming back from a tragic car accident in Nigeria earlier this year that killed two close friends.

Hearn is aiming to return in July but is protective. He won’t reveal any names until AJ is fully back in camp and shows he’s ready mentally and physically.

Names like Moses Itauma (who just destroyed Jermaine Franklin) are being called, but the risk of returning to this fight is huge. Hearn will likely be looking for a reliable victory to restart the engine.