Olympic gold medallist and undefeated professional boxer Anthony Joshua has been one of the few reasons that fans of the sport have reignited their lust for the heavyweight division. For too long, it’s been stale and boring. But Joshua is bringing finishes and enormous amounts of potential.
He was the first man to knock out 37-fight veteran Kevin Johnson, and he has stopped all 13 of his professional opponents so far, needing a maximum of three rounds to do it in. Though it might be getting ahead a little bit by suggesting he is the best in the world, it looks like he’ll certainly be mixing it with the top guys sooner rather than later.
With his reputation and finishing ratio, fans are keen to see him in tough fights against the world’s elite, and he might get that chance next time out as Dillian Whyte could be in the crosshairs. This one also brings an interesting angle as Whyte defeated Joshua as an amateur, and is still undefeated in his own right at 14-0, while there is an edge of animosity.
Former champion David Haye has also thrown his hat into the ring, suggesting that he’d be interested in a return to face Joshua. North West man David Price is also in the running for a high-profile, all-England contest to really stir up the pot between the big guys on the domestic scene.
Tyson Fury leads the way in terms of UK heavyweights at the moment, though betfair have him as a 3/1 outsider at the time of writing against Wladimir Klitschko later in the year. Most are tipping Joshua to be more successful than Fury, with his power and amateur pedigree definitely a step ahead. Whether Joshua comes to realise it remains to be seen, but we’ll find out if he can come through the tough tests that are being lined up for him in the near future.