WBO interim heavyweight champion Joe Joyce is hoping to get a fight against Tyson Fury or Oleksandr Usyk in the summer of 2023.
Joyce is the mandatory challenger to Usyk, who holds the WBO, IBF, WBA, IBO world titles. Fury is the WBC world champion.
If all goes according to plan, Fury and Usyk will go head-to-head in an undisputed, high-stakes fight over the coming year.
Joyce plans to keep busy with a return to the ring in March, then hopes to have Fury or Usyk in the summer.
A few days ago, Fury mentioned Joyce as a backup opponent – if a deal with Usyk falls through.
“I plan to fight in March, while everyone else is fighting,” Joyce told Sky Sports. “For the summer, [I plan] to go for a big one, like Usyk or Fury. I will be ready because I will have had one at the beginning of the year to get started.”
“I don’t understand why people [sit around and wait for a big fight to happen]. It makes them rusty when they get shot and lose their skills, you always want to keep improving your skills and learning and growing as a fighter and correcting all the mistakes, and participating in these exciting fights for the fans. It’s entertainment, the goal isn’t just to keep my ‘0’ [undefeated record]”
Joyce was at ringside earlier this month at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, watching Fury dominate and stop veteran boxer Derek Chisora in a trilogy bout.
After the fight, Joyce was front and center as Fury verbally lambasted Usyk in a heated one-on-one.
“It was funny and fun at the same time,” laughed Joyce. “Fury started to ramp up, then I ramped up with him. It was a lot of fun and Usyk was just there watching Fury.”
