Former two-time heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua will be at ringside for the undisputed fight between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk.
The undisputed clash is on February 17 in Saudi Arabia with the winner holding the IBF, IBO, WBO, WBA, WBC titles. The contest has a two-way rematch clause, which makes a second encounter very likely.
Joshua’s route to redemption for 2024 completely changed last weekend. The British banger returned to action on Saturday in Saudi Arabia, battering before stopping Otto Wallin in five rounds.
Joshua was already slated to face Deontay Wilder in a long-awaited $100 million showdown in March. That scenario fell apart when Wilder was unexpectedly upset by Joseph Parker on the same card, outpointed unanimously.
With Wilder out of the mix, the current frontrunner to face Joshua is unbeaten contender Filip Hrgovic, the IBF’s mandatory challenger to the Fury-Usyk winner. There is an outstanding order for the winner of that bout to face Hrgovic.
But because of the contracted two-way rematch clause, the IBF title will likely become vacant in the aftermath of the first Fury-Usyk encounter. That would allow Joshua and Hrgovic to collide for the vacant IBF strap.
With future plans in mind, Joshua wants to be in the mix when Fury-Usyk finally unfolds.
“If it’s a fight for the heavyweight championship of the world or fight a big-name opponent, I will always choose the former because that’s the creme de la creme. It’s the most prestigious title you can win,” Joshua said. “Every fight leads toward the final destination. I have bigger ambitions, I don’t celebrate when I win these fights, I celebrate when I win world championships.”
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