By Scott Gilfoid: Matchroom Sport promoter Eddie Hearn says IBF heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua (17-0, 17 KOs) will be fighting on December 10 with or without Wladimir Klitschko at the Manchester Arena in Manchester, England. Hearn hopes Wladimir will take the fight against the 27-year-old Joshua instead of facing a “soft touch” in Germany.
Wladimir could be facing Lucas Browne on December 10 in Germany. Browne is a step up from the guys that Joshua has been fighting in his last three fights against Dominic Breazeale, Charles Martin and Dillian Whyte.
Joshua won’t be fighting his #1 IBF mandatory challenger Joseph Parker, because he’s going after the WBO belt. Parker will be taking part in the WBO’s four man tournament to ty and win that belt. That has to be seen as good news for Joshua and Hearn, because Parker was a very, very real threat to beating him. With the combination of punching power and boxing skills that Parker has going for him, he would have had a good chance of beating him.
Wladimir is waiting for the World Boxing Association to sanction the Joshua fight before he gives the green light to the fight. The WBA is taking their time in deciding whether to have their title up for grabs for the Joshua-Klitschko fight. If the WBA doesn’t decide soon, then Wladimir will be fighting in December against Lucas “Big Daddy” Browne.
“With the hold up from the WBA, we need a little more time, so regardless of if it’s Klitschko or not, AJ will return on December 10 in Manchester. In an ideal world there would be as many belts as possible on the line, but I hope he takes up the challenge rather than a soft touch in Germany.”
There’s still a chance the WBA could come through and sanction the Klitschko vs. Joshua fight. They’re going to need to do it soon, because Wladimir isn’t going to wait around for a lifetime for the WBA to make a decision what they’re going to do with their belt.
Wladimir won’t be taking part in the World Boxing Organization’s four-fighter tournament for their vacant WBO title that was vacated by Tyson Fury. That would be labor intensive if Wladimir had to compete in that tournament because he would need to win two fights to pick up the WBO title, and it probably wouldn’t even be worth it. The names that Wladimir would be fighting would be lesser names, and not the ones that have huge fan bases.
“We are beginning discussions with other opponents now while crossing our fingers that Klitschko takes the fight, regardless of how many belts are on the line,” said Hearn.
I can only imagine who these “other opponents” are that Hearn is in discussions with for Joshua. My guess is the likes of Dillian Whye, David Price, Eric Molina, Carlos Takam, Hughie Fury, Johan Duhaupas, Dereck Chisora or Kubrat Pulev.
It’s one of those guys. With only two months to go before Joshua fights on December 10, it’s doubtful that Pulev will be the guy that he faces. My guess is someone like Duhaupas or Eric Molina. In other words, someone that Joshua can beat without any problems, and without having to prepare a great deal for the fight. It’ll be someone that Joshua can beat in his sleep without even having to put in much effort.
If the WBA makes a decision this week about letting their belt to be fought over by Joshua and Klitschko, then the fight will be able to be saved. However, the WBA is going to need to make a decision QUICKLY before Wladimir signs for his alternate opponent.