AAnthony Joshua was supposed to fight Deontay Wilder six years ago this month. Joshua captured the IBF and WBA versions of the world heavyweight title in December 2017, taking his record to 19-0 after defeating Wladimir Klitschko eight months earlier. A perfect negative record. He was 27 years old at the time and at the peak of his career. With a 38-0 record (37 wins via stoppage), Wilder became the WBC heavyweight champion and the most imposing knockout merchant on the planet.
A unification fight would carry considerable risks for both men, but with both men in their physical and mental prime as heavyweight champions, they would almost certainly produce an intriguing matchup. Of course, promotional rivalries, sanctioned body shenanigans and the rampant egos of boxing’s power brokers meant the fight never happened. Just this month, Joshua and Wilder apparently signed contracts that would see them meet in Riyadh in March 2024. These delayed plans have now been consigned to the heap of dashed fighting game dreams.
Wilder was defeated by Joseph Parker in an embarrassingly one-sided fight in Riyadh in the early hours of Sunday morning. One judge awarded every round to Parker, and two other judges scored it 118-111 and 118-110. Wilder, Joshua, their promoters and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia all believe that funding boxing may help hide its appalling human rights record, but they all share the harsh reality of heavyweight boxing Feel sorry.
“He lost 120-108 [on one scorecard]Just after 3 a.m. local time on Sunday, Eddie Hearn said of Wilder: “He lost every round.” As Joshua’s promoter, Hearn will all The blame falls on Wilder. “This is the most one-sided heavyweight fight I’ve ever seen. Look, it ruins our plans. The future is not Deontay Wilder. But if anyone’s going to ruin the plan, I’m happy for Joseph Parker [his trainer] Andy Lee. Top, top guy. “
Hearn was right to praise the admirable Parker, who fended off the threat of Wilder’s devastating right hand all evening while following the coach’s authoritative strategy. “Are you distraught?” Hearn said before launching into trashing Wilder’s reputation. “I don’t know, but I’ve said it before, this guy has never beaten an elite heavyweight.”
Wilder, however, is an exciting force in boxing. His record of spectacular knockouts may include a string of journeymen, but so did Joe Louis’s “Wanderer Club of the Month” in the late 1930s and 1940s, when the great world champion demolished the heavyweight division. Boxing champion. Wilder’s epic boxing trilogy with Tyson Fury – in which he knocked out the “Gypsy King” four times – showcased both men’s grit and courage in a series of unforgettable world title fights. strength. Wilder and Fury are a match made in heaven, a compelling dance partner, but the cost of their rivalry is clear, and the American never looked like his old self against Parker.
Hearn next chose to take Joshua to extravagant new heights after Joshua dominated Otto Wallin, who was saved by his corner at the end of the fifth round in Riyadh. “Anthony Joshua is way ahead of Deontay Wilder,” Hearn said, even though their planned showdown in March has been billed for months as boxing’s decisive One of the confrontations. “I believe Anthony Joshua is the best heavyweight boxer in the world. It was a perfect performance, an amazing performance. A guy who said he’s back. With that mentality, I think He is unbeatable: 2024 will be a big year for him.”
Joshua looks more impressive and focused in the ring than he has in years. Yet Wallin was a limited opponent and ahead of the fight it was clear that the most worrying aspect for those who admired Joshua centered around his uncertain mentality.Joshua was knocked out by Andy Ruiz Jr in 2019, whom he defeated in an extremely cagey rematch six months later. , Joshua lost twice in a row to the more talented Oleksandr Usyk, who came up from lightweight and made him look like a flawed former champion.
Joshua sensibly pointed out after the fight that boxing is “a dangerous business.” It’s like snakes and ladders – one win gets you up the ladder, another win gets you up the ladder. [loss] Take you all the way back.”
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Of course, Hearn had a new plan. In February, Fury and Usyk met in boxing’s first world heavyweight title unification fight since 1999, when Lennox Lewis was the last undisputed champion. But Hearn is banking on the fact that if the new champion does not agree to an immediate fight against mandatory contender Filip Hrgovic from Croatia, the International Badminton Federation, one of the four main sanctioning bodies, He will be stripped of his belt. Fury and Usyk would likely prefer a more lucrative rematch rather than face the still relatively unknown Hrgovic.
In Hearn’s latest grand plan, the path will become clear as Joshua battles Hrgovic for the vacant IBF throne. “He wants to be a three-time heavyweight champion of the world,” the promoter said of Joshua. “Filip Hrgovic will face AJ for the world title.”
This imagined fight had none of the atmosphere of Fury v. Usyk or the resonance of Joshua v. Wilder, until a much-hyped day of reckoning in Saudi Arabia wiped out those plans. Parker, the unknown but likeable New Zealander, just smiled amidst the madness of boxing. “Everyone has other plans, but this is God’s plan. I’m really healthy. I stay calm, relaxed, focused. There’s always something to work on, but I win. Merry Christmas to us.”
