Zhang’s Next Fight Could Be In China
Frank Warren wants Zhilei Zhang’s next fight to be in China.
Zhang is coming off the best win of his career after having stopped Deontay Wilder in the fifth round in his last fight. The victory was vital as the 41-year-old bounced back from his loss to Joseph Parker. The defeat to Parker meant he was no longer the WBO Interim Heavyweight Champion, which made him mandatory for the Undisputed Heavyweight Champion Oleksandr Usyk. But with the Wilder win under his belts, Zhang could face several heavyweights.
Zhang’s Options
One option is to pursue the Parker rematch. Zhang lost out on a decision after being outboxed in the second part of the fight. However, he did trouble Parker, dropping him on two occasions. On another day, Zhang could have stopped Parker if he had nailed his man. Parker and Zhang have expressed their desire to run things back, making it possible for a fight to occur next.
There is also the chance to face Anthony Joshua. Joshua is reportedly in line to fight at Wembley in September. Daniel Dubois, the IBF Interim Heavyweight Champion, is the favourite to get that fight. But a fight with Zhang is possible. Joshua beat the Chinese in their only meeting at the 2012 London Olympics. Joshua would then turn pro and become a two-time Unified Heavyweight Champion. Zhang has now had a resurgence at the late stage of his career, making the Joshua fight a good spectacle.
If Joshua does not take the fight, a bout with Dubois would also sell. Dubois is coming off two of his best wins. He stopped Jarrell Miller last year and followed that up by stopping Filip Hrgovic. That shut down the narrative that Dubois quits in the ring. He took a knee against Joe Joyce while failing to get up from the count after Usyk dropped him.
Another possibility is to face Dillain Whyte. Whyte recently returned to the sport after a third-round stoppage win over Christian Hammer. Whyte was on course to fight Joshua last year, only to fail a test. After being cleared, he is now chasing the big fights. A fight with Zhang allows the Chinese to remain active in his career while giving Whyte a shot at a big bout. Regardless of the choice, Warren wanted a big fight in China. Given Zhang’s increasing popularity, a fight would sell out.
Warren Reacts
“We’re blessed with heavyweights at Queensberry. Zhilei done a brilliant job. I mean, I like him. He’s such a character, such a nice guy and he really bought into the team spirit of Queensberry against Matchroom. He was one of our star performers and obviously got us the knockout points. I’d love to do a fight for him in China.
“[And] I’d like to be on mainland China. I’d like to go out there because the hits he [Zhang] got apparently on their social media was like hundreds of millions. There was many, many millions watched his fight. I think he got more hits than anyone, but of course, we want to carry on doing what we’re doing because we want to see him in big fights. He wants to be in big fights. At the moment, the belts are all tied up until Tyson and Usyk fight in December. In the meantime he won’t want to be sitting on his backside, he wants to be busy and it’s our job to keep him busy,” Warren said
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