April will be a bit of a game changer for him I reckon. If he destroys Franklin and Usyk wins then he's back at the top table. If, however, he has an unconvincing performance and Fury wins well then his standing will be seriously affected. I'd imagine quite a lot hinges on all this for DAZN too, because he can't come cheap.
You are probably right but he’s fighting a soft touch. Needs to rebuild his confidence and see what happens.
If he doesn't knock Franklin out his confidence will be damaged further, particularly if Fury sees off Usyk.
He posted an IG post earlier looking a lot lighter. Looking much less like a bodybuilder now assuming it is a recent photo.
I hope he blasts Franklin out of there quick and fights again within 3 months, he needs some momentum. If we get Fury Usyk we won’t get AJ Fury until 2024 if at all, we’re more likely to see AJ Wilder in Saudi this year.
Joshua needs a big fight again. He's not getting any younger and in the last years of his prime. After franklin, he needs to fight Fury or Wilder. If Usyk and Fury retire, then Joshua vs Wilder for a belt and then work from there. I believe Joshua will be a champ again, he's a good fighter, but unfortunately there are just two absolute freaks around in his era also. Joshua is good, but Usyk and Fury are potentially ATG's at their peak.
Beating Franklin won’t mean much apart from a confidence boost. He’ll take him out within 5 rounds. I’m not interested in the whyte rematch and would prefer to see AJ fight wilder, fury, Joyce or hrgovic next
Fury & Usyk will be tied up with each other this year. Wilder and AJ's teams have a horrible relationship and cannot negotiate a deal. Joyce is with Warren on BT so boxing politics will rear its head. Hrgovic isn't a name and looked horrible against Zhang last time out. The Whyte fight will be the one that they run with in my opinion. Very winnable fight which will sell on the back of Whyte being a marketable name in his own right + the needle/history between the two. It's also very easy to make solely through Hearn.
My preference for AJ would be Joyce at the end of the summer and then Fury in the fall. Probably will just be Shyte in September and nothing else though
I think I preferred the roided up wrecking ball AJ to the one that tries to be a boxer. Play to your strengths.