Zhang Wants Joshua Next – ‘Let’s Get It On’
Zhilei Zhang wants to face Anthony Joshua to avenge his loss in the 2012 Olympics in London.
The Chinese is the current WBO interim heavyweight champion, coming off the two best wins of his career. He stopped Joe Joyce in back-to-back fights, putting him in line to face the winner of Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk once the WBO mandatory is called.
The heavyweight is certainly a man who is being avoided. Zhang’s southpaw stance, with the ability to stop opponents, has reignited his career at 40. Zhang is also appealing since a fight in China would do huge numbers. The heavyweight wanted to secure a fight with Tyson Fury, but it failed to gather any momentum. Joe Joyce’s decision to exercise his rematch clause ended hopes of that happening, leaving the door open for an AJ bout.
Zhang On Joshua
“I’m happy we have both come a long way and gone through ups and downs in life. Now it’s time to do this for the sport of boxing and give it to the fans around the world. Let’s get it on,” Zhang said
The chances of the fight happening are slim for now. Following Joshua’s impressive win over Otto Wallin, the attention has turned towards a bout with Filip Hrgovic. The Brit’s desire is to become a three-time heavyweight champion.
Hrgovic is the current IBF interim champion in line to face the winner of Fury vs Usyk. But since they have a two-fight deal in place, the IBF will strip the winner if he does not defend against the Croatian. That puts Joshua in line to face Hrgovic. Making a fight will be much easier since they are both under the Matchroom banner.
Joshua’s Future
“2024 will be massive for him. It was a tough decision between the championship and Wilder. We signed for Wilder, he lost tonight, that’s OK, it happens in boxing. Maybe it is a blessing because this guy is about championships. He wants to become a three-time heavyweight world champion.
“It will be Filip Hrgovic against AJ for the world title. I am so happy to see him smiling and performing so well. He is a dangerous man when he is in that kind of mood. 2024 is going to be very interesting, every heavyweight should be on notice – he is back,” Hearn stated
If the Hyrgovic fight does not happen, Joshua still has a small chance of facing Wilder. Following his win over Wallin, Joshua admitted he would be open to facing the American if the fanbase wanted it. But the desire to see the fight happen has fallen following Wilder’s poor performance in which he only won a single round on one judge’s scorecard. Either way, Joshua is in a great position to target a world title next. If the winner of Fury-Usyk retires, the belts will become vacant, putting AJ at the forefront again.
‘Find all the latest boxing news and MMA breaking updates on boxingnews.com’
