Hearn: Fury, Hrgovic both on the table for Joshua's next fight

Anthony Joshua's promoter, Eddie Hearn, is hopeful that a blockbuster match against WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury will materialize soon.

Fury is scheduled to square off with Oleksandr Usyk in an undisputed title bout on May 18 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. There's a two-way rematch clause in the Fury-Usyk deal, meaning the loser can trigger a second fight afterward. But Hearn believes that Turki Alalshikh, Saudi Arabia's chairman of general authority for entertainment, will attempt to book Fury-Joshua instead if Fury wins.

Hearn said Joshua will wait until after Fury-Usyk to announce his next fight.

"No decision will be made, in my opinion, before the Fury-Usyk fight. Because I'm still a firm believer that if Tyson Fury wins that fight, His Excellency will do everything he can - regardless of the two-fight deal - to make what is the biggest fight in the history of the sport," Hearn said in a Matchroom Boxing interview published on Wednesday. "And that's Anthony Joshua against Tyson Fury."

Joshua, a former two-time heavyweight champion, is coming off a second-round knockout win over former UFC heavyweight titleholder Francis Ngannou last week in Riyadh. After the victory, Joshua said he wants to face the Fury-Usyk winner.

Hearn said a bout against Filip Hrgovic - presumably for the vacant IBF heavyweight title - is another option for Joshua if a rematch between Fury and Usyk happens. The IBF intends to make its heavyweight title vacant if Fury and Usyk fight twice.

"Really, there's lots of opportunities for AJ," Hearn said.

For now, Hearn said Joshua plans to relax after fighting four times in the last 11 months.

"(Joshua)'s always ready to enter camp. He knows what the activity has done for him, and he's certainly not looking to just become inactive," Hearn said. "But I think a rest - a small rest - is definitely in order."