Heavyweight boxing

OTTO WALLIN versus Anthony Joshua is the “perfect fight” for both stars, says the Swede’s promoter.Wallin, 32, left Tyson Fury needing 47 stitches in their 2019 bloodbath in a bout that raised his profile despite suffering a defeat on points.
Eddie Hearn is currently searching for Anthony Joshua’s next opponentCredit: PA
Otto Wallin’s promoter is adamant his man is the ideal opponent for AJCredit: Getty
Since then the heavyweight has racked up four straight victories in between a cancelled bout with Dillian Whyte.
Rydell Booker was his last victim in May as he recorded a unanimous decision victory.
Wallin would love a rematch with Fury, who is now the WBC champion, but the Gypsy King is instead closing in on a unification bout with Oleksandr Usyk.
That has led to claims that talks are underway with Eddie Hearn over a potential showdown with fellow Brit boxer AJ.
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Joshua, 33, is expected to return in March after suffering back-to-back setbacks against Usyk and Hearn is in the process of matching him with an opponent.
Now Wallin’s promoter, Dmitry Salita, has explained why he feels a showdown between his man, who has been defeated once in 26 bouts, and the former two-time world champ would be ideal for all concerned.
Speaking to VegasInsider, he said: “Both Otto and Joshua want to fight Tyson Fury.
“Otto gave Tyson the hardest fight of his career landing more punches against him than Klitchko and Wilder 1 put together.
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“Joshua wants to warrant a fight with Tyson after losing to Usyk.
“I believe that Otto vs Joshua is the perfect fight for both. 
“Eddie is attaching Joshua to lots of big names, we’ll see how serious Joshua is based on the opponent he selects next.”
Salita insists that AJ is still a “special fighter” but is adamant it would be his man with his arm raised in victory after a potential clash.
He added: “It’s (AJ vs Otto) a very interesting fight.
“Joshua is obviously one of the elite guys in the division. Does he still have what is necessary to compete at an elite level?
“Otto wants to be heavyweight champ and showed he is world class in his fight vs Tyson and subsequent quality wins after that.
“I pick my guy Otto to win by UD. Otto is smart, focused, has a very good chin and is still very fresh. He did not have too many fights where he took punishment.
“His only loss is a controversial one to one of the greatest heavyweights of our generation.
“Joshua was a unified heavyweight champ, Olympic Gold Medalist. He is definitely a special fighter.

“Based on the last several performances it looks like he may be losing a step in some things.
“I did see some technical improvement with Garcia which was made in a short amount of time. We will see if he is still legitimate based on the level and performance on his next opponent.”
The Swede left Tyson Fury needing 47 stitches in their 2019 bloodbathCredit: Getty More

ICONIC boxing promoter Bob Arum has worked with some of the hardest-hitting fighters of all time – but one stands out among them all. Arum has been in the business stretching over seven decades, dating back to the 1960s.
Mike Tyson pictured fighting Evander Holyfield in 1996Credit: AP:Associated Press
Derek Chisora was stopped in ten rounds of his trilogy fight with Tyson FuryCredit: Jamie McPhilimey
It has seen him work with some of the best the sport has ever seen, including Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao.
And Arum has somewhat of a specialty in heavyweight boxing, doing business with Muhammad Ali, Mike Tyson, George Foreman and current champion Tyson Fury.
But it is the frightening undisputed bantamweight champion Naoya Inoue – nicknamed The Monster – whose punch packs the most power.
And Arum claimed only 19 stone Fury, 34, can handle Inoue’s power due to their 11 STONE weight difference.
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He told GiveMeSport: “The only guy who might be able to handle Inoue is Tyson Fury because he’s a little too big for him.
“But this Inoue, I mean he’s scary. He is like a loaded rifle. I get such a kick out of this guy.
“You really begin to feel sorry for his opponent halfway through his fights.”
Inoue, 29, is a three-weight champion, rated among many as one of the best in the world, with 21 knockouts in his 24 consecutive wins.
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He recently stopped Britain’s Paul Butler, 34, to reign as undisputed champion with all four belts in the 8st division.
Arum added: “I’ve never seen anybody with the concussive power, pound-for-pound, that Inoue has.
“I mean, never, particularly at that weight. He sets the guy up and boom he knocks them out the guy can’t move. He is really something special.”
Naoya Inoue knocked out Paul ButlerCredit: Getty
Tyson Fury pictured with promoter Bob ArumCredit: Getty More

EDDIE HEARN has revealed talks over a showdown between Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder are ongoing.The long-awaited grudge match is closer than it’s been since the duo held all the heavyweight marbles four years ago.
Anthony Joshua was on course to face Deontay Wilder in 2018Credit: GETTY
But the pair’s long-awaited showdown is seemingly closer than everCredit: GETTY
Promoter Eddie Hearn has revealed talks over the grudge match are still ongoingCredit: MATCHROOM BOXING
Hearn reached out to Wilder’s representatives ahead of Joshua’s rematch with Oleksandr Usyk in August to gauge their interest in setting up the fight and is still in contact with them over the lucrative bout.
The Matchroom Boxing chief told iFL TV: “The communication lines are good now, between me and Shelly Finkel [Wilder’s manager].
“We’ve had a lot of talks, a lot of chats [but] until the training team is confirmed for AJ, we really won’t make any opponent selection because we want the input of a trainer.
“We’ve got three or four guys that we are talking to and ready to try and make a move for.
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“But at the end of the day, we’ve got to make sure that the training team are comfortable with that.”
Former long-reigning WBC champion Wilder was recently ordered to face ex-unified king Andy Ruiz Jr in a final eliminator by the Mexican sanctioning boy,
And Hearn expects The Bronze Bomber to fight the trimmed-down Ruiz next.
He continued: “I’m guessing that is what he is going to do next.
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“At the same time, we’d like Dillian Whyte to fight Deontay Wilder in the interim or AJ in the summer.
“We will have to see but it looks like Wilder will fight Ruiz and AJ will fight at the end of March/April and Dillian Whyte may fight as well.
“And I think they’re all going to come together in the summer.”
Joshua, 33, is confident he’ll share the ring with Wilder before it’s all said and done, telling GQ: “Let’s look to the future.
Anthony Joshua is set to return to the ring in MarchCredit: GETTY
“It will definitely happen.
“We’re in the same division, we’re in the same era, that means the fight has to happen.
“2023 is looming, it’s a big year for boxing, and that fight will definitely happen.”
AJ hasn’t set foot in the ring since his second successive defeat to Usyk but is planning to return in late March. More

TYSON FURY fears a fight with Anthony Joshua is “DONE” forever – just like his grudge match David Price. The British rivals have come close to getting a deal over the line before, only for it to face total collapse.
Tyson Fury fears a fight with Anthony Joshua is ‘done’ foreverCredit: Getty
Oleksandr Usyk twice beat Anthony JoshuaCredit: AP
In August 2021, they agreed a historic unification bout until Fury, 34, was ordered into a trilogy bout against Deontay Wilder, 37.
Joshua, 33, then went on to twice lose to Oleksandr Usyk, 35, who is now in line to fight Fury for the undisputed crown next year.
The domino affect is something the Gypsy King is all too familiar with following the breakdown of his grudge match with David Price a decade ago.
Fury told iFL TV: “Me and David were simmering real good, real good simmering, coming to a boil as well. One fight away, from that massive, massive showdown.
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“Big, big, big British rivalry, and he got beat off Thompson, rematched and got beat, then he was done wasn’t he. There was no more rivalry.
“After that he fought one of my common opponents, Christian Hammer, and got knocked out by Hammer as well.
“Then it was totally dead in the water. That is what has happened with Joshua, we were supposed to fight, over in Saudi, in 2021.
“Wilder won that arbitration court case and I had to fight this mandatory.
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“So I had to fight Wilder, nearly got done, twice down in the fourth round.Then Joshua had to fight Usyk, lost and lost and now it’s done.”
Price, 39, retired in 2021 but was called out to a shock stadium fight by Fury, who is currently in talks to fight Usyk for all the belts.
Meanwhile, Joshua is set to return in the spring on 2023 following his consecutive losses.
David Price pictured in 2017 with Tyson Fury More

TYSON FURY can retire a happy man without ever fighting Anthony Joshua – having already beaten the rival he was most obsessed with. The pair of domestic heavyweight stars have tried and failed to have a Battle of Britain bout.
Tyson Fury can retire a happy man without ever fighting Anthony JoshuaCredit: Getty
Anthony Joshua has failed in talks to fight Tyson FuryCredit: GETTY
After Joshua, 33, lost twice to Oleksandr Usyk, it floored fans’ hopes of the dream fight even further.
Now Fury, 34, looks set to face Usyk, 35, in a bid to crown the heavyweight division’s first four-belt undisputed champion.
And that appears to be enough for the Gypsy King to walk away without any regrets in his career.
He told iFL TV: “All of a sudden you’ve got this Ukrainian lad who’s come up from the weight below, beat Joshua and taken his acclaim for whatever he built and achieved.
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“He’s now lost that and Usyk is a worthy challenger, but five years ago they were nobodies, they weren’t even thought of.
“Times change, things change, goalposts move but at the end of the day my goals have always been my goals.
“My only real goal in boxing was to defeat the long-reigning super champion in Wladimir Klitschko.
“The second longest-reigning champion in the history of our sport.”
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Fury dethroned Klitschko in 2015, ending a nine-year reign at the top of the throne and marked a new era in the division.
Fury had spent years building his way up to a title shot against Klitschko, setting up a famous upset on German soil.
He said: “Klitschko, all those years ago in the press conference, he said ‘You want me belts don’t you? You want what I have.’
“I said no. I don’t. I couldn’t give a f*** about any of that. I just want to punch your face in mate.
“And he didn’t understand it, but I hope he can understand it today. None of that was ever, ever, ever what I wanted.
“I just wanted to beat that man. And then when I beat him, Everest was over. It was done. My lifetime achievement goal finished through beating him.
“It was always about beating Klitschko. I was obsessed with the man for years.
“Obsession is a crazy thing to have for something. No one gave me a chance. And when I beat him, that was it.”
Wladimir Klitschko lost to Tyson Fury in 2015Credit: Bongarts – Getty More

TYSON FURY revealed Hasim Rahman’s famous upset over Lennox Lewis sparked his love for boxing. The heavyweight hero was born into boxing with his dad John and uncle Peter both fighters.
Hasim Rahman knocked out Lennox Lewis in 2011Credit: Reuters
And Fury was trained by his father from the age of ten but never really had a passion for it.
That was until Rahman shockingly knocked out Lewis in their 2001 thriller in South Africa.
Fury, now 34, told iFL TV: “My first ever memory of boxing – like massive memory – was Lennox Lewis versus Hasim Rahman. The first one.
“We waited up all night to watch it and whack – he got chinned out in a few rounds didn’t he? And that was my first real, massive boxing memory.
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“Obviously I’d been watching boxing way before that, but not really ever interested in it until that moment.”
Fury was just 13 at the time but did not have his first bout in the ring until another three years later.
He weighed 14 STONE aged 14 and as a result was banned from junior amateur boxing.
Fury had a short 32-4 record in the unpaid ranks before turning professional aged 20 in 2008.
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Fast forward 14 years and he is the No1 heavyweight in the world, unbeaten in 34 fights and twice reigning as champion.
Fury revealed the first time he watched greatness in the ring up close was when Ricky Hatton beat Kosta Tszyu in 2005.
He said: “The first massive fight I went to was probably Ricky Hatton versus Kosta Tszyu, that’s as big as it gets.
“It was in Manchester and it was for the belt against a legendary champion.
“I believe there was about three or four other future world champions in there that night.
“Me, Crolla, Terry Flanagan, all from Manchester and all went on to win the world title. We were all inspired by “The Hitman” all of us.”
Tyson Fury revealed Hasim Rahman’s win over Lennox Lewis sparked his love for boxingCredit: Jamie McPhilimey More