ANTHONY JOSHUA says he can be the key to Tyson Fury redeeming himself after the breakdown in talks to fight Oleksandr Usyk.
Fury failed in his attempt to unify all four heavyweight belts for the first time in history after negotiations with Usyk collapsed.
The historic title unification was KOd, reportedly due to a row over the financials for a potential rematch.
But now AJ and his promoter Eddie Hearn hope to capitalise by sealing a fight against Fury instead.
Joshua said: “There’s no better time to get Fury in the ring than now because he needs me to redeem himself from this circus, this letdown.
“He needs me so there’s no better time than for him to call my name out and I’m someone that will take on any challenge.”
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Joshua, 33, returns on Saturday at the O2 Arena against American Jermaine Franklin in a must-win comeback bout.
It comes after two consecutive defeats to Usyk where he lost and failed to regain the WBA, IBF and WBO belts.
The Ukrainian champion then hoped to take the trio of titles into an undisputed decider with Fury.
He even accepted a lowball 70/30 offer to get a deal over the line until talks ultimately halted at the 11th hour over terms for a rematch.
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Joshua still backs his two divisional rivals to fight but refused to point the finger and play the blame game after the bout broke down.
He told BBC 5 Live: “It’s not my position to slate or slag anyone off.
“I’m pretty sure that fight will happen because I feel like there could potentially be a method to the madness.
“If, number one, I was in that position [and] didn’t take that fight, how would people treat me?
“And number two, if I didn’t take that fight what would Fury have to say about me? So I’m not going to stoop to that level.
“I respect everyone that steps into the ring. But I just sometimes think some people should watch their mouths a bit.”
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
