Joshua in hibernation until 2026

Is a fight between AJ vs Fury now not the highest level anymore? For sure it will be a box office hit.

 

Tbf Chisora has put together a decent little run of recent wins, Washington, Joyce and Wallin, Joyce was still top 10 and Wallin fringe top 10 when they fought Chisora.

Honestly if we go by rankings at time of win, Chisora is probably 3rd best after Parker and Kabayel out of the contenders. Hrgovic is building a good little streak, same with Wardley, but their recent opponents weren't ranked as highly as Chisora's.

Crack up if Chisora ends up in another title fight though.

 

If prime Mike Tyson was around, AJ would run to the ring to engage him in combat.

 

He's a complete ***** and that has always been profoundly evident.

 

Joshua isn't interested in becoming champion anymore; he just wants to cash out. Same with Crawford & Canelo tbh. These guys have put in the years and want to max out their income. I'm not mad at it.

I'd like to see Joshua vs Fury. Both of them are declined and neither is going to make a big run. The fight would do big box office and both have a plausible chance to win (would favor Fury).

 

It would certainly be a box office success, and we're talking about two former world champions who were at the top of the heavyweight ranks in previous years but are no longer there. Fury is coming off two losses and has announced his umpteenth retirement, while AJ is coming off a devastating defeat, a real massacre, and I really don't think Joshua can earn another shot at the title. For these reasons, I say his career at the top is over. If AJ manages to prove me wrong, I'll be ready to give him credit, but right now I really think his career at the top is over.

 

He'll be champion again.
Belts will scatter, he'll quickly get a shot with a 'good matchup'. (old, light puncher, small etc).
He'll win.
The English will cry tears of joy.

The only question is do they want the Fury fight money so bad they offer 50/50 to make it happen, or do they use the belt to play 'A-side' games and then claim Fury ducked them for their legacy. I can't quite tell.

 

There are strong rumours that AJ has been recovering from an injury.

His career is also predicated these days on him not needing the money and not being particularly motivated to fight. He does it out of duty to his hangers on who depend on him for a living.

I think if it was up to AJ he would retire tomorrow. He is completely done at the highest level.

He will be carefully selecting future opponents and don’t expect any of them to be under the age of 30. Expect him back in the ring around March-May of 2026.

They dropped a bollock by not making the Whyte rematch as that would have been a money spinner, not sure why that never happened when it should have done. As it would have been easy money and a big event.

 

He has way more injuries than just some fragments of bone. With the muscularity he is carrying above what he would be if he wasn’t boxing as a HW that takes its toll on the body. As well as the intensity of training as someone approaching 36, that adds up, that is miles on the clock.

 

Thanks. Hope you're good.
Necessary opposition, I would argue, in terms of fights which would have helped solidify Fury's own claims to have been the best of his generation and the best HW of all time. It really would not have been that difficult ... basically ANY of the top ten while he was champ. AJ would have helped too, but I think that would have been less important had Fury's cv been stronger. Instead we got Pianeta, Chisora 3, Ngannou (while saying it wasn't necessary to take on more legit fighters). The Whyte fight was unusual in that sense. He only took on Usyk when forced to (and paid crazy money). I just don't think city's history shows he is particularly inclined to take the AJ fight.

 

Joshua has "earned" his position by being able to consistently sell at stadiums for a decade. It is probably the single biggest thing a boxer can do to "earn" title shots and opportunities.

But for real Joshua was along reigning title holder and a professional through and through, with his money and clout I expect him to be able to pretty much walk into a title shot if the belts are scattered if he wants to.

 

Fury fighting Wlad in Germany as the underdog and then fighting Wilder three times over in America starting as the underdog in the first fight is more accomplished and more ballsy than anything Joshua ever did. Maybe yes he could have a few more fighters in there from the top 10 but Wlad was ranked no1 unified Champion and Wilder was either ranked no1 or no2 when they first fought. Not sure if Joshua has ever fought a no1 ranked fighter unless Usyk was for the rematch and neither did Joshua win a World title away from home soil. Yes I agree Fury without a doubt thought he was the best of this era but then along came Usyk and put an end to that. The Fury v Joshua fight was always Hearn’s plan as the last roll of the dice for a mega money cash out,Fury not taking it was two fingers up to Hearn and not surprising but I think we may still see it at some point even though it means nothing to what it could have been earlier in there careers . I do believe both Fury and Joshua are just waiting on Usyk retiring and then trying to pick up another belt,however there best days are well behind them now .