Underdog Jermaine Franklin is ready to go to war against favorite Anthony Joshua on Saturday night to send him down for his third straight defeat in their twelve-round headliner on DAZN.
Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn is understandably concerned about this fight because if he loses, the big-money fights against Tyson Fury, Deontay Wilder, and Joe Joyce could go out the door, particularly if AJ hangs up his gloves.
This is Franklin’s chance to open the door for lucrative title fights against heavyweight champions Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk, which would be a dream come true for the ‘989 Assassin.’
If Joshua (24-3, 22 KOs) doesn’t retire, a well-paying rematch could be in the cards for Franklin (21-1, 14 KOs) so he can show the win wasn’t a fluke.
While the oddsmakers have Joshua as the favorite, the fight is more of a toss-up because Franklin has the kind of skills that could give AJ problems.
On paper, you look at the career of Anthony Joshua and think, ‘Big favorite against Jermaine Franklin,’ and everybody raises their game. In boxing, everybody raises their game, and things change overnight in one fight,” said Eddie Hearn to Matchhroom Boxing.
“You start to get worried, and I do because I’m desperate to see him win.”
“I’m back at the lion’s den. I feel quite normal, I feel confident, and I’m actually looking forward to the objective at hand,” said Joshua.
“I’m passionate about the sport, so my excitement is just to get in there and fight,” said Jermaine Franklin. “I’m a calm, cool guy. I really don’t speculate too much outside of that. I’m just ready for it. I’m ready to go to war.”
“Anthony Joshua has single-handedly changed the face of British boxing. It doesn’t matter if you’re a fan, a hater, you have to acknowledge it,” said Hearn. “He’s filled arenas and motivated people to fall in love with the sport again.”
“When you’re a conqueror, you can’t get too comfortable on your throne, in my opinion, because you’re constantly on the battlefield. There’s someone else coming to hunt you down,” said Joshua.
“I love life, I smile a lot, I enjoy life, and I try to make the most of it. No one makes it out alive, so I’m going to enjoy my time while I’m here. I never get too comfortable with my position because as I said, there’s always someone out there that wants what you have,” said Joshua.
