Anthony Joshua Says Fight Vs. Deontay Wilder ‘Has To Happen’
Joshua is coming off of back-to-back losses while Wilder was victorious in his last one.
Former two-time heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua wants to feel the power of Deontay Wilder before the two heavy punchers bid adieu to the sport.
Joshua and Wilder were poised to meet each other when both had championship belts wrapped around their waste, but the negotiations fell through.
“All this ‘what else is missing’, let’s look to the future,” Joshua told GQ’s official YouTube channel.
“That was the past, why it didn’t happen. It will definitely happen, I always say ‘we’re in the same division, we’re in the same era, that means the fight has to happen’.
“2023 is looming, it’s a big year for boxing. We’re all at the top of our division and that fight will definitely happen and bring a lot of light to the heavyweight division.”
Wilder’s trainer, Malik Scott is also open to a fight with Joshua. But he questions Joshua’s fragility of not sticking to his words and whether he will accept the fight or not.
“If it were up to me, Deontay would Anthony Joshua. Deontay, me, and our team want it, but Joshua is having a rebuilding type of conversation,” Scott said
“But mentally, is he available,” said Malik about Joshua. “Physically, he can do it. What I mean by that is he willing to fight Deontay right now? Deontay is ready to fight anybody in the world, especially these names I’m naming right now. The Usyks, the Anthony Joshuas, and even the Fury part four.”
Scott is confident if the two ever get into each other’s face, it will be Wilder who will come out victorious. He believes that Wilder has the power to dismantle Joshua inside three rounds.
Joshua has been struggling with his form recently, dropping two back-to-back decisions against Oleksandr Usyk. As a result, he no longer holds on to the IBF, IBO, WBA and the WBO titles he had been carrying for the last three to four years.
Wilder, a former WBC world champion, made a stunning comeback with a brutal-one punch knockout of Robert Helenius. The Bronze Bomber was able to turn things around for himself after suffering a similar fate as AJ in the hands of the Gypsy King, Tyson Fury.
Both fighters are now gearing up for a major showdown in the coming new year and with duo still sharing huge stature in the heavyweight division, the prospect of fighting each other highly interests both of them.