AJ Vs. Wilder Could Still Happen On The Fury Vs. Usyk Card

In some breaking boxing news, Anthony Joshua is still optimistic that a fight with Deontay Wilder could go ahead in Saudi Arabia on the Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk card.

When talks over the fight first emerged, reports indicated that Skills Challenge Entertainment were pressing ahead with plans for a four-man heavyweight tournament in Saudi.

However, talks broke down as the General Sports Authority became the leading name in Saudi boxing. The organisation became a key figure in making the Fury-Ngannou fight as Joshua vs. Wilder appeared to be off the agenda.

So much so that Eddie Hearn admitted that other venues were being considered moving forward. And yet, Joshua was optimistic that the fight could still occur in Saudi.

Joshua Vs. Wilder

“They want to put Usyk vs Fury and Joshua vs Wilder on the same night. When Fury gets through Ngannou it is going to be late October going into November so I doubt he will prepare for Usyk and then fight in December. It is too short. So, the next window will be in March or April and that is when the undisputed fight will happen. What we are being told is that they want to make it a mega-card,It won’t be a championship fighter – which is Usyk and Fury. It won’t be none of them guys and I am not too sure about the Wilder situation” Joshua

Nevertheless, the bout is clearly not as big as what it had been. The pair were first linked with fighting each other in 2018 when the undisputed heavyweight championship was on the line.

But since then, both fighters have had losses on their record with the belts no longer being under their control. And given the pair’s recent form, it does not offer much hope by way of a competitive fight.

Joshua’s last two wins over Jermaine Franklin and then Robert Helenius have been far from convincing. Although that may have been the case, it is worth nothing that Joshua was rebuilding under his new trainer, Derrick James.

Meanwhile, Wilder has been out of the ring for a year since his first-round stoppage of Robert Helenius. And that inactivity is unlikely to help the 36-year-old moving forward.

After all, Wilder is entering into the latter parts of his career with not too many big fights out there. But by the looks of it, there are still stumbling blocks in the deal.

Joshua’s Next Steps

“[Finalizing a deal for Wilder] feels like a land grab at the moment. Some fighters want to maximize their revenue. When I first started, you start, you build up your record, you fight and then you fight the big fights. But it is like, ‘where can we get the most money for the fight?’. And they want to go to Saudi Arabia so they are waiting for the undisputed fight. For my career, I have got to stay busy. And in terms of an opponent for December we have got to find the right opponent,” Joshua said