Joshua Hits Back At Wilder’s Criticism Of Him
Anthony Joshua has hit back at Deontay Wilder after the Bronze Bomber questioned his mentality in the sport of boxing.
Joshua was a former unified heavyweight champion on two occasions before he lost his belts to Oleksandr Usyk. Since then, the Brit has been on a rebuild as he hired Derrick James as his new trainer. Although that may be the case, Joshua appears to be working with Ben Davidson for his next fight with Otto Wallin on December 23rd, 2023, in Saudi Arabia.
That has raised question marks over whether Joshua will work with James again or if this is for a one-off fight. At the same time, Wilder has scrutinized Joshua’s mentality just as talks over a fight between the pair continues to build up. The Bronze Bomber will face Joseph Parker on the same card as Joshua, with the hope that both fighters face each other if they win. And yet, Wilder has thrown a cat amongst the pigeons with his following comments.
Wilder On Joshua
“I worry about every fight he is in. We question Joshua about his identity. Eddie Hearn built Anthony Joshua, he wasn’t born a champion, he was made a champion. They did an amazing job of promoting him and getting him to the top. I would’ve been the undisputed heavyweight world champion many years ago if I had the opportunities he was given,” Wilder said
Nevertheless, Joshua’s resume does have better names on his record. Fights against Usyk, Wladimir Klitschko and Dillian Whyte are arguably better names than what Wilder has faced. The latter’s only big fight was against Tyson Fury where he came up short. Despite this being the case, Wilder is seen as a favorite if they were to face each other.
The American still possesses the ability to stop his opponents, as shown by his first-round stoppage of Robert Helenius. At the same time, it took Joshua seven rounds to stop the same fighter. In addition, Joshua has been accused of being gun-shy when it comes to his boxing. His style of explosive combinations has been abandoned in favor of boxing behind his jab, with suggestions that he is worried about being stopped ever since the loss to Andy Ruiz Jr. In response, Joshua had this to say.
Joshua On Wilder
“Who the f— is he? He’s a boxer, not a psychologist. The boy has had 50 fights and he fought Jason Gavern in his 30-something fight, I probably fought him in my twelfth. We are different, my identity is strong. If they’re looking for weaknesses and gaps, then they need to stop looking over here because I’m solid,” Joshua stated
The narrative is in place for the two face off against each other. And Eddie Hearn has confirmed that a fight in the spring of next year is being targeted. All that is left to do is for both boxers to secure wins in their next fights. And provided that happens, fans could finally see who comes out on top between Joshua and Wilder.
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