Anthony Joshua doesn’t appear too fussed about a mouth-watering fight between heavyweight rivals Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk – as he refused to make a prediction over who would come out on top.
The pair own all the belts in the heavyweight boxing division and are most certainly on a collision course with both men keen to unify the titles. AJ suffered back to back defeats to the Ukrainian while a blockbuster clash with Gypsy King failed to materialise late last year.
In the build-up to his comeback fight against Jermaine Franklin, the 33-year-old refused to answer who would prevail should the two meet in the ring for a historic unification bout. “I hope they can get it on. I don’t really wanna talk about [a prediction],” Joshua told iFL TV.
“My name’s spoken about a lot, I don’t need to speak about anyone else. That’s not what a man does. Good luck to both.” The two-time heavyweight world champion fights at the O2 Arena for the first time since 2016 on April 1, and the first time in eight years he will not be fighting for a world title.
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Since his last bout at the O2, where he has fought seven times, Joshua has had the majority of his bouts at major outdoor stadiums. AJ won his very first world title at the South-east London venue in 2016, but in the seven years since his last appearance at the famous indoor arena, the Watford local has endured a challenging time, suffering three defeats and losing his heavyweight titles in the process.
Now at a career crossroads, AJ is more determined than ever to bounce back with what would be one of his most important victories. “I’ve always tried to make an empire but I made a conscious decision last year to put my heart into boxing and nothing else,” he said.
“Throughout my career, this is probably the most serious time I’ve taken it.” Looking to the future, Joshua is confident he will contest a bout with Deontay Wilder. Compared to the Brit, the fortunes of the American were reversed, as he has never clashed with Usyk but lost two titanic battles with Fury.
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Rumours pitting the two against one another emerged last year and AJ remains confident the fans will see him stand across the ring from the Bronze Bomber. “It will happen, and I think it’s long overdue. It’s a conversation that’s been happening for a long time, so for me to say, ‘It’s going happen, it’s going to happen,’ it’ll feel like I’m just waffling. When it does, it does. And it will,” Joshua also told iFL TV.
“I’ve been in that realm before where I’ve spoken about it, and it didn’t materialise,” Joshua continued about the elusive fight against the former WBC champion. “When it materialises, it’ll happen.”
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