By Jake Tiernan: Spencer Oliver believes the casual boxing fans won’t be excited for Anthony Joshua’s next fight on April 1st because they won’t know who Jermaine Franklin (21-1, 14 KOs) is, and he doesn’t possess the size or the physique that makes him stand out
Oliver says this is the 29-year-old Franklin’s lottery ticket because if he defeats Joshua (24-3, 22 KOs), it will open the door to great fights.
Of course, if Franklin defeats Joshua, he’ll likely be offered a lucrative rematch and will make life-changing generational money, just as we saw with Andy Ruiz Jr’s rags to riches story after he defeated AJ in 2019.
Casual boxing fans would have preferred that Joshua fight Dillian Whyte in a rematch on April 1st, even though the ‘Body Snatcher’ is totally played out after twelve years as a pro and has nothing left in the tank other than his name is recognizable to people that only pay scant attention to the sport.
Franklin earned the fight against Joshua by beating the brakes off the washed Dillian last November and getting robbed blind by the judges in London. Joshua was at ringside for that fight and liked what he saw in Franklin with how he effortlessly outboxed the old-as-the-hills Whyte.
Joshua needs a quality opponent to prepare him for a high-caliber opponent later this year. Whyte would have been useless, given how faded he is. If Whyte hadn’t looked so poor since 2019, he’d be a suitable opponent, but unfortunately, he looks shot and should be kept far, far away from upper-tier opposition.
The last thing Joshua needs right now is Derek Chisora 2.0 because he needs to prepare himself for a dangerous match against Deontay Wilder or Tyson. Fighting Whyte would be a total waste of his time, and it wouldn’t help him unless his plans were to face a lower-level guy like Chisora or Dave Allen.
Franklin given lottery ticket
“Jermaine Franklin, he’s a lovely geezer, but he come with no credentials. No one gave him any shot against Dillian Whyte. He left with bags of credentials. 99% of the people felt he beat Dillian Whyte,” said Spencer Oliver to iFL TV.
“But then all of a sudden, Dillian gets p****ed off because Jermaine gets the opportunity, but I got to tell you, Anthony Joshua, he struggles with the shorter guys. He’s always struggled against shorter guys.
“Jermaine Franklin is 6’2″. Joshua is like 6’7”. It’s going to be one of those. Joshua is taking a gamble. When I spoke with Jermaine, he was like, ‘Do you know what? That’s like my lottery ticket. I felt like I won against Dillian Whyte. I didn’t get the decision. I’m thinking; I’m a man; I’ll get back to America. I’ll get on doing what I’m doing.’
“The guy’s story is mad, man. Before the Dillian Whyte fight, he was working in a factory building roofs to support his three kids. He was potless. Then he gets the Dillian Whyte fight; then he gets this opportunity for a massive payday. t
“More than that, he gets a lottery ticket because if he beats Anthony Joshua, he puts himself in the mix. He recognizes that and sees this as a huge opportunity. He’s up for it, man. When he boxed Dillian Whyte, he came over here and looked like a little fatty, didn’t he?” said Oliver.
Franklin was given lottery ticket
“When I saw him the other day, I’m not saying I’m in great shape, but I’m looking at him, and I’m looking at him going, ‘Ah, there’s not a lot in this.’ It’s going to be interesting,” Oliver continued. “For the casual fan, they won’t really give a s**t. They won’t know who Jermaine Franklin is, but let me tell you. He’s a live wire and a dangerous opponent.”
In this case, it doesn’t matter if the casual boxing fans know who Franklin is or not because this fight isn’t about lining Joshua’s pockets. He needs someone that can help him progress. This is the type of opponent that will help Joshua build himself to a bigger fight against Wilder, Fury, or Joe Joyce.
If Hearn is smart, he’ll forget about looking for a money fight for Joshua against Whyte in the summer unless that’s something that AJ insists on.
Joshua’s comment about “money” being his rationale for getting back in the ring to fight Franklin suggests that he no longer cares about facing the best. With that mindset, perhaps Joshua should fight Whyte next because he’ll make good money off the backs of his British fans, and there won’t be much of any threat due to how badly washed Dillian is at this stage in his career.
“Joshua’s career is really hanging on this fight, so he needs to win. He can’t win in seven or eight rounds. He needs to win in style. He needs to go out there and make a statement. We’ll only find out on April the 1st,” said Oliver.