By Ruth Raper
CAST your memory back to 2017. Anthony Joshua is the unbeaten IBF and IBO heavyweight champion and has just secured a stunning win over the legendary Wladimir Klitschko.
Across the ocean, reigning WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder has stopped 38 of his 39 opponents. It seemed as though these two giants were on a collision course that would end in the winner being crowned the best heavyweight of our generation.
Seven years later, the heavyweight landscape is unrecognisable. AJ has been on a journey that has seen him go from the poster boy of British boxing to being mocked by the public and all but counted out – before climbing back into the top hierarchy of the division. Wilder’s air of invincibility has been chipped away at by Fury, Parker and Zhang leaving nothing more than a shell of his former menacing self.
The Joshua vs Wilder fight seemed inevitable. So how has it come to be that what could have been one of the biggest fights of our era never happened and will now only be spoken of in the ‘imaginary matchups’ category?
You could argue that’s how boxing works: a brutal game of snakes and ladders. All it takes is one fight to completely change the perception of a fighter. As the opening bell rings, they’re unbeatable, adored and idolised. One bad night and they’re ridiculed, intensely flawed and cast to the outskirts of their division. They then face the daunting task of having to climb their way back from oblivion.
However, you could also argue that the fact we have missed out on Joshua-Wilder is simply a reminder of how things have changed. We are now in the four-belt era: the WBC, WBO, IBF and WBA; these governing bodies all make it extremely difficult for the best fights to be made. If the governing bodies continue to pick their mandatory challengers with what seems to be very little logic, then we will continue to see the best fights happen far too late, or never at all.
This is one of many current issues. Others include: fighters and promoters protecting their unbeaten record, promoters being unwilling to work with each other, waiting for ‘the right money’, and waiting for ‘the right time’ until the time has passed completely.
As our current crop of elite heavyweights come into the twilight years of their careers, it is clear that there is one particular matchup that, if it didn’t happen, would be an even bigger disaster than missing out on Joshua vs Wilder.
At this point in time, Joshua vs Fury is arguably the biggest fight in boxing. Two British heavyweights that have had rollercoaster careers, both at points being idolised and then demonised, now at the presuppose of their careers.
This matchup has the potential to eclipse previous all-British heavyweight classics, especially if both fighters are successful in their next outings. Lewis vs Bruno and Cooper vs Bugner were huge occasions; however, there are some important differences.
Bruno, although the nation’s sweetheart, was never really seen to be on the same level as Lewis, whereas Joshua and Fury have seesawed in the public’s opinion of who’s the top dog. In the early days of AJ’s career, many saw him as unbeatable, coming into the professional game with an Olympic Gold medal, stopping his first 20 opponents.
Unlike Fury, who entered the professional ranks with a much smaller fan-fair and at times looked unimpressive, struggling with the likes of John McDermott. Later in their careers, they switched places. AJ received his first loss at the hands of the speedy Mexican Andy Ruiz and from there on, he struggled to shake the narrative that he had lost his grit and didn’t want to engage. Whereas Fury managed to outbox the legendary Wladimir Klitschko and go on to dethrone the dangerous Deontay Wilder.
Cooper vs Bugner was a night to remember, mostly because in one corner stood the public’s darling, ‘our Enry’, and in the other, a fighter that much of the UK saw as a refugee from Hungary. The strong contrast in feelings towards both men made the outcome extremely controversial.
Bugner won the contest via a close points decision, but some were adamant that Cooper, the two-time BBC Sports Personality of the Year winner, should have won. Cooper retired and the press and public took their anger out on Bugner, who went on to say, “I was treated like the man who shot Bambi”.
The press and public clearly favoured Cooper, whereas we can’t say this for Joshua or Fury. Both men have had their time as the ‘hero’. In the early stages of AJ’s career, his Olympic Gold medal, action hero good looks, and media training helped turn him into a phenomenon. Fashion brands wanted him as an ambassador, and he boasted a very large female fan base, and even secured a partnership with Lynx so men around the UK could smell just like the heavyweight from Watford.
Equally, Fury has had his fair share of love from the British fans. The Gypsy King has been very open about his challenges with mental health and addictions. After his win against Klitschko, Fury went into a downward spiral, in which depression, anxiety, alcohol addiction and cocaine abuse got the better of him.
Tyson has stated that he was “going through a lot of personal demons” and admitted having suicidal thoughts. Fury battled his demons and returned to the ring (after shedding nearly 14 stone) to take on The Bronze Bomber in a trilogy that secured his place as the people’s champion.
Surely, it is unthinkable that we might miss out on a fight between two men who are so similar yet polar opposites and have held so much public attention. Surely that can’t happen…
Worryingly, a few hurdles stand in the way of this iconic matchup. For this fight to retain its sparkle, AJ and Fury must get past their next opponents. On the 21st of September, AJ takes on young contender Daniel Dubois. There are a few similarities between the two Brits. Both have some momentum behind them. DDD had impressive performances against Hrgovic and Miller, and AJ demolished Ngannou, Wallin and Helenius. When Dubois and Joshua come face to face, we will see how flattering their last few matchups were.
Another similarity is that the September 21st contest will be both fighters’ fourth outing with their new coaches. Both boxers seem to be settling in nicely with their new coaches, and both coaches are confident that their charges will leave their next fight victorious.
The difference between these two Brits is the stage they are at in their careers. AJ is now 34 years old. He has won and lost the world title twice already. There is no doubt that a loss against ‘DDD’ at this stage of his career will not only make it extremely difficult for him to become a three-time heavyweight world champion, but it will also hugely affect his legacy.
Dubois, on the other hand, is only 26 years old (27 by the time he fights Joshua). Although a loss against AJ is not ideal, he will be able to come again and is in prime position to take over the heavyweight division once the current crop of champions retire.
Joshua is the strong favourite going into the fight, but Dubois offers enough of a threat that an upset isn’t completely inconceivable. I feel AJ will simply be too much for ‘DDD’, although Dubois has silenced many of his doubters in his last two contests. We must remember that Hrgovic and Miller are not Joshua.
Daniel Dubois lands a right on Filip Hrgovic
Fury’s next contest is where we really run into trouble. The Gypsy King enters a rematch with the formidable Oleksandr Usyk. In their first fight, we witnessed Usyk do what many said couldn’t be done and walk away with an impressive points win against a man who weighed 38 pounds heavier than him at the official weigh-in.
We saw a fight of three parts in a contest that had us on the edge of our seats. In the first third of the fight, we saw Uysk march forward, pushing the pace and applying pressure with his feet, constantly fainting, and following with backhands to the head and body. Although these rounds were close, Fury’s negativity and lack of power shots lost him the rounds.
In the middle part of the fight, Fury seemed to find his rhythm and started holding his feet and landing combinations. At this point, Uysk appeared to have tired, and the momentum was well and truly on Fury’s side. In the last third of the contest, Uysk found a gear that even his biggest fans didn’t know he had. The Ukrainian turned the tide and closed the show in dominating fashion.
Going into the rematch, Fury has a goliath task ahead of him. Uysk has now proven that he cannot be outworked, he doesn’t succumb to mind games, and most importantly, he can hurt Fury.
With all this in mind, how can Fury avenge his loss and get back on track for a clash with Joshua? I think The Gypsy King’s only chance is forgetting the showboating, rearranging his corner team, holding his ground for a split second longer (as he did in the middle rounds) and throwing combinations instead of ones and twos. Whether Fury can do this for long enough to get the victory is questionable, but what is certain is that if Uysk wins, he will cement himself as the best heavyweight of this generation and arguably the pound-for-pound king.
If both Brits win, then there is little doubt that we will see them share a ring before too long, but what if one, or both, get dethroned before then?
Logic says that if Fury loses but AJ wins, then the fight still holds value, as then they’d both have suffered two losses at the hands of Oleksandr Uysk (and presumably, the winner of Joshua vs Fury would get a third crack at him). However, does the Joshua vs Fury fight still happen if AJ loses? Or if both men lose, what then?
Whatever the outcome, I want to see Joshua vs Fury. A fight like this doesn’t come around very often. Two giant men from the same little island, in the same generation, highs and lows, their careers playing out side by side like distorted mirrors. It is possible that their next fights could be stumbling blocks, but should the result really matter that much? Hasn’t history taught us that styles make fights? This one could be a classic.
