The promoter says even he ‘might have a chance’ against
boxing YouTubers such as Jake Paul but he is impressed by their ability to draw an enormous audience
![Barry Hearn: ‘How do I make you famous even though you’re not very good?’ | Donald McRae](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2e35bad3a655aa1f83162f6a8177d70956a16b56/169_563_5960_3576/master/5960.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=c2257d6fd8a98783e2393732b5338a04)
Barry Hearn is meant to have retired but here we are in his swanky old office talking about his certainty that his son, Eddie, would beat Jake Paul in a pay-per-view extravaganza that would generate millions of pounds. We are in the midst of a long and reflective interview about sport and life, work and fame, mortality and marriage, which includes Hearn’s memories of starting out in promotion 40 years ago in a grimy little office beneath a snooker hall in Romford as well as his new ambition to play
Cricket for England’s over-70 team.
“As Jake Paul has shown, you don’t have to be good now. You just have to be famous,” Hearn says amiably as he considers our changed world. “So that brings in a different expertise. How do I make you famous even though you’re not very good?”