Eddie Hearn, promoter for heavyweight Anthony Joshua, says there is no fear in matching his boxing against former WBC world champion Deontay Wilder.
Hearn would like to bring Joshua back in the summer, potentially in a rematch with domestic rival Dillian Whyte.
And then Hearn wants to see Joshua have a year-end blockbuster clash against Wilder or current WBC champion Tyson Fury.
Hearn has rejected the notion that Joshua and his handlers will avoid coming together with Wilder.
“[Joshua has] boxed everybody that he’s been asked to box,” Hearn explained to ESBR Boxing.
“And now it’s a fight to avoid against Deontay Wilder. If you think ‘AJ’ is an underdog in that fight, in my opinion, you’re mad.”
Joshua, a two-time world champion, came back to the ring earlier this month, with a twelve round decision win over Jermaine Franklin. The victory snapped a two-fight losing streak at the hands of unified beltholder Oleksandr Usyk.
Wilder, who knocked out every opponent outside of Tyson Fury – who went down four times in their trilogy – presents a very serious risk to Joshua.
In his last ring appearance back in October, Wilder demolished Robert Helenius in the first round.
“Wilder’s very dangerous. AJ will box his ears off. But if he gets caught – like anyone else in the division – he could get stopped. But if he hits Wilder on the chin, he’s knocking him clean out,” Hearn said.
Several years ago, when Joshua and Wilder were undefeated world champions, their respective teams were unable to finalize a showdown between them.
Despite the two suffering losses in recent years and no longer holding titles, Hearn believes their match is still one of the biggest fights to be made in boxing.
“It’s just one of the greatest fights in boxing. Do you want to see the most exciting fights? Because they come with a bit of risk. So let’s roll the dice and see AJ put it on the line in a massive fight,” Hearn said.