By Scott Gilfoid: Promoter Frank Warren sees Joe Joyce stopping former IBF/WBA/WBO heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua if that fight occurs now.
Joshua (24-2, 22 KOs) and his promoter Eddie Hearn require an opponent for an interim fight in May or June, and the unbeaten 36-year-old Joyce (13-0, 12 KOs) is one of the more appealing options in terms of the UK boxing public for AJ to face.
Thus far, Joshua, 32, seems to be showing no interest in a fight with Joyce, which would seem odd given that he’s probably his best option.
Years ago, Joshua beat Joyce when the two were amateurs, but so much has changed since then. Joshua has gotten older, his stamina has disappeared, and he can no longer take a punch without getting wobbled.
Many boxing fans view Joshua as a shot fighter, and it’s hard to argue against that. With the way Joshua has folded in two of his last four fights, he appears to be a textbook example of a fighter suddenly losing it after a bad defeat.
We’ve seen it happen many times with different fighters like Meltrick Taylor and Roy Jones Jr going downhill immediately following a knockout loss. Joshua is seemingly in the same company as those guys, which is why Joyce would be dangerous for him at this point of his fading career.
The guy that Joshua wants, Deontay Wilder, probably won’t take the fight with him because he’s coming off a devasting knockout loss at the hands of Tyson Fury.
The other choices for Joshua are Otto Wallin, Luis Ortiz, and Joseph Parker. The former two-time world title challenger Ortiz is 42-years-old, and well past it.
Wallin isn’t a big name, but he’d be a risky opponent for Joshua due to his toughness. In the end, the risk involved for Joshua makes Wallin a poorly suited opponent for AJ’s interim fight.
“Joe [Joyce] wants it, and why wouldn’t he? It’s a great opportunity for him,” said Warren to iFL TV on a fight between Joyce and Anthony Joshua. “If AJ wants to fight Joe, then get around the table and work it out.
“Going into his last fight, he was the bigger draw, but his credibility and stock has gone down,” Warren said about Joshua.
“He’s [Joyce] got a good jab, and I think he’ll wear him down, and I think he’ll knock him out. In the last couple of years, he’s had a couple of performances where he’s looked more than average,” Warren said of Joshua.
Warren is 100% dead-on correct about Joshua’s stock having dropped off the side of the cliff in the last couple of years. Joshua looks like damaged goods since his first fight with Andy Ruiz Jr in June 2019, and there’s nothing that can be done about that.
Joshua is boxing’s version of Humpty Dumpty, and he can’t be put back together again by his promoter. Hearn is trying to pick up the broken pieces of Joshua’s career, but he won’t let him. Joshua thinks he knows better and insists on fighting quality opposition when he isn’t good enough anymore.
Leaked Joshua vs. Joyce sparring footage
It looks like Joshua and Hearn have an essential decision to make about whether to take the risk in choosing Joyce or go with a seemingly safer choice. Unfortunately, at this point in Joshua’s career, there are no safe options for him.
Given that Joyce needs to keep in mind that his interim opponent must be someone that the hardcore boxing fans will be interested in seeing him fight on pay-per-view in the UK. He can’t drag out a stiff freshly dug up by his well-intentioned promoter Hearn for him to bat around the ring for an impressive knockout.