The unified heavyweight king Anthony Joshua is set to put his WBA, IBF, WBO and IBO titles on the line against the Ukranian undefeated southpaw Oleksandr Usyk (18-0, 13KOs) come September 25th from the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Tottenham, London, United Kingdom.
Despite Anthony Joshua very much eager to successfully defend his titles and make an undisputed championship fight possible with winner of Fury vs Wilder, he did not write off Usyk after getting disappointed with the failed plans to face Tyson Fury
“I don’t want to point any fingers. I was definitely ready. We move forward. I’ve got another challenger who’s good, just as good [as Fury],” Joshua told Sky Sports.
He continued “I have to be serious about him now. He will definitely step up, he will definitely take the fight. That’s what I need – people that are serious. I would have loved to have boxed for the undisputed championship because it was a big fight for the public. We had everything set up. I have to move forward and not keep dwelling.
“The most important fight for me is the next one but you have to have a vision of where you want to get to. I have to stay consistent and stay ready. Once I fight Usyk, who knows what will happen next? Will I fight Fury, Wilder, Dillian Whyte, Andy Ruiz, Luis Ortiz? Who knows. I have to stay on track and ready for each fight, but have a long-term plan. It’s about the belts, not the person. I don’t mind who it is. I want to fight for legacy.”
Having said that, Anthony Oluwafemi Olaseni Joshua still believes Usyk won’t match him
“When I step into that ring, no matter how much of a nice guy I am, it’s about winning,”
“It’s about defining performances and training in the right fashion so I look good, which adds stock to my value. When you fight good opponents people respect it. They have to give you credit. This is about being a throwback fighter and taking on all challenges. It’s about statement performances.” Concludes the Matchroom poster boy.
Having talked about Joshua determined to become the undisputed heavyweight champion, we now focus on his opponent (Oleksandr Usyk) who had no issue when he unified the entire cruiserweight division in 2018 – by defeating Murat Gassiev in the final bout of the first season of the World Boxing Super Series cruiserweight tournament.
Usyk thereafter defended his titles successfully four months later in November 2018 after handing Toney Belew a round 8 TKO.
A year later, Usyk moved up to face experienced heavyweight contender in Chazz Witherspoon who retired in the 7th round to hand Usyk a heavyweight debut win.
Usyk’s CV down the road to this important fight in his career makes him a tough, very tough opponent for Anthony Joshua.
This unification bout is a very difficult one to predict as a former unified Cruiserweight champion (undefeated) faces a unified heavyweight champion.
With Anthony Joshua earlier predicting to surely face Tyson Fury soon, it will be a very bitter pill to swallow if he loses his belts to Usyk.
It’s just a matter of time as fight night draws closer with barely less than 4 weeks to go.
Written By Winfred Siegu Worlanyo Yaw
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