Hopes for Anthony Joshua vs Deontay Wilder dim

Anthony Joshua

THE signs are not promising that we will get to see Anthony Joshua vs Deontay Wilder this year.

A few days ago it was a very different story. A contract was sent over, it looked like the fight the world was waiting for could be made. But now the negotiations the world is tiring of have lurched in a new direction. The WBA, the sanctioning body for one of Joshuaโ€™s three world titles, had given him time to negotiate with Wilder for the unification clash. But today the WBA declared that now Joshuaโ€™s team have 24 hours to confirm a date for the fight with Alexander Povetkin. He would have to fight Povetkin, or face being stripped of the WBA heavyweight title.

A major part of the appeal of the Wilder fight isnโ€™t only that the two are big punchers and big personalities but that it would unify all four world titles in the heavyweight division. Shedding a world title therefore would undermine that.

Eddie Hearn, Joshuaโ€™s promoter, told Sky Sports News, โ€œWe canโ€™t do a lot more than weโ€™re doing. [Anthony Joshua] wants that fight more than anything. But thereโ€™s not a lot more we can do. We sent the contract nearly nine days ago now. Weโ€™re not even necessarily expecting a signed contract back, we just want your comments. If I wanted a fight, if my fighter wanted a fight and we received a contract, I would be back with the comments within 24 hours. Nothing makes sense here at all. They emailed me on Sunday and said weโ€™ll be back with our comments on Friday. Why do you need another five or six days? They know weโ€™re under pressure from the WBA and it all feels like a big game.

anthony joshua vs deontay wilder

โ€œThis Wilder fight is one that has to get done and has to get signed. Itโ€™s a fight we desperately want but at the same time weโ€™re not going to give up a belt.โ€

So if Povetkin is ready to go, which he probably is, then that fight could well be next.

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