Who will Deontay Wilder fight next? Who will Anthony Joshua fight next? We’re not holding our breath, but there is, again, some chatter regarding the possibility of the two former heavyweight champions facing each other soon. Shelly Finkel, who spoke with Sun Sport here in the UK, said Wilder would move away from his WBC-ordered final eliminator with Andy Ruiz Jr if Joshua agreed to fight him next.
Finkel is perplexed at the way Joshua has been, and is being, inactive.
“There are conversations with Ruiz, but that is not an impediment if Joshua will fight is next,” Finkel said. “Either February, March or April, whenever they want, I don’t know why Joshua can’t be ready in February, which is three months away. Joshua hasn’t had any fights in months, Deontay is ready, we’ll fight him in the UK or in the Middle East. Period. Deontay, Shelly Finkel and PBC are willing to make a fight for Deontay to fight Joshua next.”
It seems Finkel is serious as can be about this, but will Joshua agree to face Wilder, the man who has been called one of the single hardest-hitting heavyweights in history, next – without a tune-up? It sure seems doubtful, although AJ did say on Saturday night, at the Dillian Whyte-Jermain Franklin fight, how he hopes to fight both Wilder AND Tyson Fury next year. So why not Wilder next, in February, as Finkel has called for?
There is of course talk of AJ instead facing Whyte in a rematch, maybe after a tune-up is taken by Joshua (with some talk from Eddie Hearn of AJ fighting Franklin in his first fight back after his second defeat at the hands of Oleksandr Usyk).
But as of right now, Finkel/Wilder/PBC have laid down the challenge to Joshua. Will we at last get to see this guaranteed explosion of a heck of a risky fight (for both men) some time in 2023? Again, we fight fans are not holding our collective breath, but we sure can hope all the same.