English heavyweight boxer Joe Joyce (12-0, 11 KOs) has revealed his interest in the upcoming fight between unified heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua and Oleksandr Usyk and wants to square off against the winner.
The present British, Commonwealth, European, WBC Silver, and WBO International heavyweight champion, Joe Joyce is coming off of a 10th round knockout win over fellow British pugilist Daniel Dubois which took place in November last year.
The 2016 Rio Olympics silver medallist is just days away from his return to the ring, as he is set to defend his WBC Silver and WBO International titles against French-Cameroonian boxer Carlos Takam on 24th July at the SSE Arena in London.
Joyce wishes to fight Joshua, but that’s not happening so soon
However, Joyce is already looking into the future, and has expressed his wish to take on the winner of Joshua vs Usyk, although “Juggernaut” did emphasise on facing AJ as his preferred opponent.
“I will happily take on whoever wins, but I would love the opportunity to fight Joshua,” Joyce commented on the September 25th clash between Joshua and Usyk, which will take place at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
After his undisputed title fight against WBC champion Tyson Fury was called off, WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, and IBO titleholder Anthony Joshua has been set to defend his belts against Oleksandr Usyk on 25th September. The bout will mark AJ’s return to the ring in nine months since he defended his unified crown against Kubrat Pulev in December last year.
Although, Joyce will not have AJ as an opponent immediately after the latter defeats Usyk, as the four belt title fight between Joshua and Fury is still on the cards. Provided Fury gets an upper hand over Deontay Wilder in their trilogy fight this October, the undisputed fight is expected to take place next year, and a potential Joshua vs Joyce bout can only take place in 2023.
“I think he [Joshua] will want to fight (Tyson) Fury, so we will have to see what happens there, but I am on the WBO track and looking to be made mandatory,” the 35-year-old added. (H/T DAZN)
While Joyce is currently WBO’s number 2 heavyweight, Takam is not on the top 10 and to have a definite title eliminator with the WBO, he must take on one of the top ranked fighters before earning a shot at Joshua, such as Joseph Parker, Andy Ruiz Jr and others.
