Joshua expects Haye to face Shannon Briggs

By Boxing News - 04/01/2016 - Comments

briggs5By Scott Gilfoid: Unbeaten heavyweight Anthony Joshua believes that former two division world champion David Haye (27-2, 25 KOs) will be fighting former WBO heavyweight champion Shannon “The Cannon” Briggs in the near future. It’s a fight that makes all the sense in the world for Haye to make. He needs publicity, and Briggs would bring him that. However, it would also be a risky fight for Haye because he’s little more than a pumped up cruiserweight, and not a true heavyweight like Briggs. When you get a pseudo heavyweight like Haye taking on real heavyweights like Briggs, bad things can happen to the artificial heavyweight.

Briggs, 44, recently busted into Haye’s press conference this week on Monday to call him out. Haye was announcing his next fight against little known heavyweight Arnold Gjergjaj (29-0, 21 KOs), who he will be facing in a 10 round bout on May 21 at the O2 Arena in London, UK. Briggs put Haye’s feet to the fire in the press conference by rightfully asking him why he’s fighting an unknown fighter with a padded record like the 31-year-old Gjergjaj.

All Haye could do is stammer and say that Briggs needs to get a brain scan done and pass a medical before he would consider him as future opponent. Oh yeah, Haye also wants Briggs to fight on his undercard on May 21. Briggs has since had his MRI done and he says he passed them. Now if Haye is going to disqualify Briggs as a future opponent, then he’s going to need to setup another hoop for him to jump through because it appears that Briggs is ready to fight Haye and take his scalp.

“He’s a real character and a good guy and a good man for the sport,” Joshua said to skysports.com. “He’s been a heavyweight world champion and I am sure he’ll get another go – if he keeps barking at the right person, someone is going to bite back. I think Haye will probably fight him.”

Besides Haye, Briggs also wants to fight Joshua. You can bet that Briggs will show up at Joshua’s next press conference for his fight against IBF heavyweight champion Charles Martin (23-0-1, 21 KOs) on April 9 at the O2 Arena in London.

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Briggs sees Joshua as an inexperienced heavyweight that he can expose if given the chance. It’s almost a certainty that Briggs will be here for the Joshua vs. Martin press conference, but that’s a good thing though because the press conference will likely be the equivalent of watching paint dry without a character like Briggs to help liven it up.

“He is the ultimate entertainer. He reminds me of my dad; he’s old-school, confident, still trying to keep in there,” said Joshua about Briggs.

Briggs wants Haye, Joshua and Tyson Fury while he’s in the UK. He figures he can beat all three of them, and go home to the U.S with three of the four heavyweight titles. The only title that Briggs wouldn’t have is the WBC belt that is held by the talented Deontay Wilder. That belt could prove to be the most difficult of the bunch for Briggs to win because Deontay has the size, speed, power and youth advantage over the 6’4” Briggs. I can’t see Briggs winning that fight no matter how hard he tries.

I think Briggs will be a very dangerous opponent for Haye due to his size and punching power. If Briggs lands one of his big shots against Haye, I can see him getting dropped and counted out.



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