Anthony Joshua might be coming off a vicious KO loss to Daniel Dubois, but we’ve seen ‘AJ’ rise from the ashes on more than one occasion throughout his illustrious career.
If the popular British heavyweight is to continue fighting at the highest level, there are only a handful of potential opponents out there who make sense – now, Anthony Joshua has named who he’d personally like to face.
Anthony Joshua says Tyson Fury fight ‘has to happen’ in 2025
Following his KO loss to Daniel Dubois, there are only a handful of potential opponents who would make sense for the Watford juggernaut; especially after promoter Eddie Hearn stated that AJ was in the ‘last chapter’ of his career.
Out of the various heavyweight stars out there, three are considered viable options; a rematch with ‘Dynamite’, a British vs American showdown against Deontay Wilder, and of course, a Battle of Britain against ‘The Gypsy King’.
Well, during a recent trip to Nigeria, Joshua was asked by SportsBoom which of those superstars he’d prefer to stand across the ring from next and specifically, if that could be Tyson Fury.
“I’ve been involved in a whole lot of fights, but this [Fury fight] has to happen in 2025.
“Of course, it has to happen, and hopefully, it does happen.”
If finalized, the speculation is that a Joshua vs Fury at Wembley could generate upwards of £250 million ($311 million) and would likely sell out the 96,000-capacity stadium in a matter of minutes.
Speaking to IFLTV, Eddie Hearn acknowledged that whilst he “can’t speak on behalf of AJ [as to] who he’s prepared to fight, what I know is the focus is Daniel Dubois or Tyson Fury.
“Of course, he’s [Joshua] done it all. If he gets Fury on his resume, he’s boxed virtually everybody of his era.”
Fans and pundits alike are already sharing their early predictions for how that fight between Joshua and Fury would go, with Wilder’s coach Malik Scott teasing that the result would “depend on which AJ turned up.
“To me, ‘AJ’ had a bad outing against Dubois, but I’ve seen ‘AJ’ come back from bad outings and even look impressive. If he would be ‘AJ’ who fought [Kubrat] Pulev, that ‘AJ’ would give anybody hell.
“The Anthony Joshua that fought Pulev [had] a real big-man style, fighting not tall, but fighting long, imposing himself from a distance and having his lead hand up so whoever has to get past his lead hand has a price to pay.
Joshua backs ‘Silent Roller’ to defeat Martin Bakole
Back to Anthony Joshua, who was also asked by SportsBoom about the upcoming heavyweight fight between 21-1 Martin Bakole and 20-1 Efe Ajagba, who are set for an IBF elimination bout in early 2025.
“Two giants of Africa coming together to collide, it’s going to be an interesting fight,” stated Joshua, giving a wry smile as he noted: “Efe is a good boxer, and obviously, I’m going to support Efe, even though he doesn’t support me.”
“I’m backing him [to defeat Bakole] because we are from the same place, and I really want to see him do well.”
Whenever Joshua does decide to hang up the gloves, he wants to set up a boxing academy for local talent: “When I retire, probably I can think of setting up an academy in Nigeria, and if anyone wants to turn professional, we can also help them.”