Eddie Hearn has faced criticism online after putting together a fight that saw a debuting prospect matched up against an opponent with a notable size disadvantage.
Matchroom Boxing put on a card in Newcastle where Josh Kelly pulled off a huge upset over Bakhram Murtazaliev in the main event. While fans in attendance got to witness Kelly’s win, Hearn was not in the arena to see it, as he was over in New York for Teofimo Lopez vs Shakur Stevenson.
One of the stories from the undercard involved a debutant taking on what was expected to be just another routine bout against an experienced journeyman. That all changed once they walked into the ring, as the visible size gap quickly turned what would have been an overlooked fight into one that grabbed plenty of attention online.
Fans react as Kiaran MacDonald and Marius Vysniauskas face off
In boxing, it is common for prospects to ease into their careers against journeymen, a tradition that remains in place for Kiaran MacDonald’s debut in Newcastle. Unlike MMA, where fighters often jump straight into difficult matchups, boxing still follows the slower path.
He was matched with Marius Vysniauskas, a Lithuanian veteran known for his remarkable 2024 run, during which he fought five times in six months. Vysniauskas has a 3-27 professional record across 30 fights.
The Lithuanian veteran had only been stopped twice in his 27 defeats before facing MacDonald, and he managed to make it to the final bell again.
However, what drew most of the attention online was not just the result, but the clear size difference between the two fighters – something that was not obvious from their pre-fight stats.
Fans ridicule Eddie Hearn after social media reacts to Kiaran MacDonald mismatch
After a clip from MacDonald’s win made the rounds online, fans were quick to criticise Hearn for the lopsided match-up. He has been trading barbs with Dana White recently over Zuffa Boxing’s quality, and many viewers did not hesitate to connect this fight to that ongoing debate.
To be fair to Hearn, BoxRec had Vysniauskas listed at 5’6, but that clearly was not accurate. MacDonald, reported by several sources as 5’5, appeared noticeably taller once they were in the ring.
One fan posted: “And Eddie Hearn has the nerve to talk s— about Zuffa Boxing when he is still doing s— like this.” He also branded the bout “pathetic”.
The journeyman, it was noted in another reply, was entering the fight “on a 27 FIGHT LOSING STREAK.”
Other comments were just as blunt. One asked: “Who the hell is doing the matchmaking? Got a senior citizen in there.” While another added: “Did the old geezer win a raffle to get a fight?”
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