Promoter Frank Warren is convinced there will be no fight between Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder. And, to this end, in speaking once again with IFL TV, Warren laid down a challenge of a fight for AJ, to take next.
Warren wants to see the former two-time heavyweight champ face his guy Daniel Dubois, who, of course, recently (and in the eyes of some controversially) lost in a challenge of WBA/IBF/WBO heavyweight boss Oleksandr Usyk.
Warren says a fight between AJ and Dubois would be very interesting and fan appealing, as it would be a fight that would show “who is the biggest puncher and who has the biggest heart” between the two.
“The Deontay Wilder and Anthony Joshua situation, I know their people had conversations and thought that it would happen, but I never thought that it would happen, and it’s not,” Warren said to iFL TV. “The problem is, the amount of money they thought they were going to get paid or they heard they were going to bet paid, they’re not going to achieve that anywhere.
“That’s not going to happen. What we’re hearing from Matchroom is every other week or every two weeks, they were going to announce it. We are now hitting mid-September. It ain’t going to happen. I’ll tell you a good fight if that doesn’t happen. You know what would be a good fight in the UK and people would buy tickets to watch it and we’ll see who is the biggest puncher and who has got the biggest heart? Him [AJ] and Daniel Dubois. That would sell out anywhere.”
It might be a stretch to say a Joshua-Dubois fight would sell out “anywhere,” but as Joshua is so popular (maybe not as big a draw as he once was but still hugely popular) and seeing how Dubois is a banger and plenty of AJ critics say the former champ is gun-shy these days, maybe Warren is right, maybe the fight would carry plenty of intrigue and be a big deal, especially with UK fans.
Warren says this fight, if it happened, would see both men have to “grit their teeth” and Warren is asking which of the two fighters would be better at the job – Joshua and Dubois.
Can Warren persuade AJ, and Eddie Hearn, to take this fight? It might seem doubtful to many, but who knows? If Joshua doesn’t get that Wilder fight, or another big, big fight instead, then what are his other options.
What do YOU guys say – Joshua Vs. Dubois, buy or sell?
