Hearn has 2 dates for Joshua-Wilder fight in 2018

By Boxing News - 11/30/2017 - Comments

Image: Hearn has 2 dates for Joshua-Wilder fight in 2018

By Marcus Richardson: Promoter Barry Hearn is looking at 2 potential dates for the unification fight between IBF/WBA heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua and WBC champion Deontay Wilder in 2018. The first date is in the summer of next year, and November/December.

By that time, Joshua will have already faced WBO champion Joseph Parker and picked up the WBO strap from him. Hearn believes that by the time 2018 is over, Joshua will be loaded with belts in having unified the heavyweight division by capturing all 4 titles.

Wilder has been rumored to have been offered $10 million from Hearn for the Joshua fight, which he allegedly rejected, according to Thaboxingvoice. That’s a considerable amount of money for Wilder to be turning down. But if the money pot for the Joshua-Wilder fight is more than $20 million, then it makes sense to turn down a $10 million offer. That’s good money for Wilder, but we don’t know how much Joshua is going to make off the fight. If Joshua is making more than $10 million from the Wilder fight, then it’s logical that he would want to make similar money so things are even. This news has yet to be confirmed, but it’s definitely be talked about.

”That fight has to happen at some stage. Is it the summer of 2018? Or is it November-December 2018?” said Hearn to skysports.com. “I believe it would certainly be one of those dates. I believe for a particular moment of time, by the end of 2018, Anthony Joshua will have more belts around him than Father Christmas will have around his stomach.”

Joshua could either have all the heavyweight titles by the end of 2018 or he could have none of them. There’s a very real chance that Joshua could lose to Joseph Parker or Wilder next year. Joshua has been doing good against the guys that Hearn has matched him up against thus far, but that doesn’t mean he’s going to beat Parker and Wilder too. The wheels could just as easily come off the Joshua train against one or both of those guys. If Joshua loses to one of them, then it’s unlikely he’ll face the other one in 2018. Hearn isn’t going to throw Joshua to the wolves if he starts taking losses.