Heavyweight boxing

ANTHONY JOSHUA got the red carpet treatment to kickstart the week of his comeback fight. The stars came out in support of AJ, who returns on Saturday at the O2 Arena against Jermaine Franklin.
Anthony Joshua ahead of his return fightCredit: Richard Pelham / The Sun
Jermaine Franklin poses on the red carpetCredit: Richard Pelham / The Sun
Olivia Hawkins and Rosie Seabrook pose for picturesCredit: Getty
Pop star Talia Storm stuns in redCredit: Getty
Joshua, 33, came face to face with American Franklin, 29, just days before he looks to revive his career in the must-win comeback bout.
The two-time heavyweight champion posed for pictures and answered questions ahead of his return.
Love Islanders Luca Bish, Liam Reardon and Olivia Hawkins all took to the carpet for snaps.
And pop stars Talia Storm and Bugzy Malone – a huge fight fan – were also snapped at the event.
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Boxers Maisey Rose Courtney and Skye Nicolson looked glamorous on the carpet while cruiserweight contender Cheavon Clarke also made an appearance.
Fresh off winning The Apprentice, former amateur boxer and entrepreneur Marnie Swindells posed in all pink.
Joshua will enter the ring this weekend knowing it could be his last big fight.
He lost and failed to regain his WBA, IBF and WBO world titles in a pair of defeats to Oleksandr Usyk, 36.
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Rapper Bugzy Malone is a huge fight fanCredit: Getty
Boxers Maisey Rose Courtney and Skye NicolsonCredit: Getty
Unbeaten cruiserweight boxer Cheavon ClarkeCredit: Getty
Love Island star Liam Reardon on the red carpetCredit: Getty
Apprentice winner and ex-amateur boxer Marnie SwindellsCredit: Richard Pelham / The Sun
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Joshua, working under new trainer Derrick James, needs a polished win to get back in the mix with top heavyweights like Tyson Fury, 34.
And he agrees with promoter Eddie Hearn that this is his last chance of a rebuild.
Joshua said: “I think Eddie’s right. Because how long can this run go on for, three or four years? And you know how quick time goes.
“We’re saying this now and we can look back in two years, three years, and be like f***ing hell where’s the time gone?
“So, if I was going to do another run after this, you’re talking about fighting into my forties and I believe boxing is a young man’s sport.
“It takes a real solid character like Bernard Hopkins, George Foreman, Wladimir Klitschko or Alexander Povetkin to go on into their forties.
“But this is a run I want to make successful and then, hopefully, go out on top.”
Anthony Joshua, promoter Eddie Hearn and Jermaine FranklinCredit: Mark Robinson Matchroom Boxing More

TYSON FURY has been told he MUST beat Anthony Joshua to truly be considered the best of his era. The Gypsy King currently reigns as the undefeated WBC, Ring and Lineal heavyweight champion.
Tyson Fury has been told he must beat Anthony Joshua to be considered the bestCredit: Getty
Anthony Joshua ahead of his return fight with Jermaine FranklinCredit: Richard Pelham / The Sun
And with marquee wins over Deontay Wilder, 37, and Wladimir Klitschko, 47, he is widely regarded as the division’s No1.
But the chance to put that beyond any doubt in an undisputed title decider with Oleksandr Usyk, 36, was KO’d after talks broke down.
It was a repeat of 2021 when Fury, 34, and Joshua, 33, failed in attempting to put all four belts on the line for the first time in heavyweight history.
But ex-European super-bantamweight champion Spencer Oliver wants to see the British superstars finally settle the score.
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He told talkSPORT: “I think fighting AJ is the biggest fight out there [for Fury], I think it’s the biggest fight in the heavyweight division right now, that is the one.
“AJ vs Fury is a fight we’ve all wanted to see and it’s a huge fight and I think that’s a fight that [Fury] would like, because it’s all about legacy.
“To cement your legacy in the modern era you have to box everybody and AJ is a huge name in that heavyweight division.
“So, Fury needs that name on his record if he wants to be known as the number one heavyweight of this modern era.
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“I think it’s a fight that would whet his appetite even more than Usyk.”
Joshua returns on Saturday at the O2 Arena against Jermaine Franklin, 29, off the back of consecutive losses to Usyk.
And after talks to unify the belts collapsed, promoter Eddie Hearn wants to capitalise by at last pitting AJ against Fury if he beats Franklin.
Tyson Fury facing off with Oleksandr UsykCredit: REUTERS More

ANTHONY JOSHUA has been ranked outside the top three heavyweights in the world by Carl Froch. Joshua returns on Saturday against Jermaine Franklin following back-to-back defeats to Oleksandr Usyk in the space of 11 months.
Carl Froch ranks Anthony Joshua outside the top three heavyweightsCredit: AFP
Anthony Joshua was disconsolate after defeat to Andy Ruiz JrCredit: Reuters
But it was actually AJ’s first ever loss, to Andy Ruiz Jr in June 2019, which Froch believes took the most toll on his career.
The former super-middleweight world champion rated his top five heavyweights in the world, putting Joe Joyce, 37, at No5.
But just behind him was Joshua, 33, as retired Froch, 45, explained his decision to leave AJ out of the top three.
He said on his YouTube channel: “I think he has had a great career. It started off brilliantly, he beat Dillian Whyte, showed tenacity and aggression.
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“To then climb off the canvas against Wladimir Klitschko at Wembley, that was an amazing win.
“From then he went on and on before unfortunately losing against Andy Ruiz Jr.
“That loss took a part of his soul, destroyed him and made him nervous.
“He got a win in the rematch and outboxed him but it wasn’t a performance that convinced me he believes in himself.
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“He was fighting scared, on his back foot.”
Joshua is fighting to save his career against Franklin, 29, as Froch added: “He has got to find his feet.
“We all expect him to beat Franklin next but let’s see how he does it before we make too much judgement.”
Froch finished off his list with Deontay Wilder, 37, at three, Usyk, 36, second and Tyson Fury, 34, leading the way.
Tyson Fury facing off with Oleksandr UsykCredit: REUTERS More

EDDIE HEARN wants to kickstart talks for Anthony Joshua to fight Tyson Fury after his return against Jermaine Franklin. Joshua welcomes Franklin to London for his comeback bout at the O2 Arena on Saturday night.
Eddie Hearn pictured in the gym with Anthony JoshuaCredit: https://twitter.com/DAZNBoxing/status/1636082079212486659/photo/1
Promoter Frank Warren with Tyson FuryCredit: Instagram / @frank_warren_official
And he is looking to regain his confidence and bounce back from consecutive defeats to Oleksandr Usyk.
Usyk, 36, was in negotiations to take the WBA, IBF and WBO straps he won against AJ into an undisputed title decider with Fury, 34.
But talks for the division’s first four-belt unification collapsed at the 11th hour amid a disagreement over the financials for a potential rematch.
So with the historic bout all but KO’d promoter Hearn wants to capitalise by instead pitting Joshua against Fury in a British blockbuster.
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He told DAZN: “If this fight doesn’t get made, I want to sit down with George Warren and God-willing AJ gets through Jermaine Franklin on April 1, I want to go straight into that fight. AJ against Tyson Fury, why not?
“It’s financially a much bigger fight for Tyson Fury than Oleksandr Usyk.
“It’s the biggest fight in world boxing by a mile. But if the Usyk fight does fall through then I think we should be kicking and screaming for the AJ fight.
“And sometimes things happen that enable fights that you never thought could happen to happen and maybe this is one of those moments.”
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Credit: SUNSPORT
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Usyk now looks set to face WBA mandatory challenger Daniel Dubois, 25, following the breakdown in undisputed talks.
Meanwhile, Fury could turn his attention to Britain’s Joe Joyce, 37, who first has to beat China’s Zhilei Zhang, 39, on April 15.
For Joshua, 33, victory is a must in his return against Franklin, 29, as a hat-trick of straight losses could spell the end of his illustrious career.
Anthony Joshua, Eddie Hearn and Jermaine FranklinCredit: Richard Pelham / The Sun More

ANTHONY JOSHUA has been told to jack his boxing career in if he fails to beat Jermaine Franklin in his return fight. Franklin travels to London to spoil AJ’s comeback plans on Saturday night at the O2 Arena.
Anthony Joshua, promoter Eddie Hearn and Jermaine FranklinCredit: Rex
Joshua, 33, is coming off two consecutive points losses to pound-for-pound star Oleksandr Usyk, 36.
Promoter Eddie Hearn hopes a confidence-building win over Franklin, 29, puts them right back on track for the big names and titles.
But former cruiserweight world champion-turned Sky Sports pundit Johnny Nelson insists another defeat should spell the end for AJ.
He said in a column: “If Anthony Joshua loses, he jacks it in. If he doesn’t jack it, he should jack it (in).
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“Because it’s a hard mountain to climb. Especially when you’ve had the success and the heights that he’s had.
“So he can’t afford to lose. That’s a must. Then from that, it’s confidence building.”
Joshua believes this is the start of his road back to the heavyweight title, which would make him a three-time champion.
And Nelson feels if AJ is not contending for the belts then he is better off hanging them up.
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Credit: SUNSPORT
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He said: “We’ll see if he really thinks ‘you know what, I can eventually become world champion again, I’ll fix what I got wrong’.
“Because he’s only been boxing 10, 11 years as a professional fighter.
“So if he thinks he can fix what he think he got wrong in regards to why he’s not world champion, then there’s a reason to stick around still chase the guys that are there, one of them has beaten him twice.
Of course there’s that lucrative fight that everyone’s talking about, which is him and Tyson Fury, which personally, I fell in love with the idea at first but it was teased so much and it never happened.
“So I don’t even don’t want to talk about it.”
Johnny Nelson says Anthony Joshua should retire if he loses to Jermaine FranklinCredit: Rex More

ANTHONY JOSHUA is already teeing up his summer showdown with Dillian Whyte by revealing the violent way he won their last brawl remains his favourite KO.The London heavyweights first clashed in a 2009 amateur slugfest that 34-year-old Whyte won on points.
Anthony Joshua is eyeing a trilogy fight with Dillian Whyte this summerCredit: TIMES NEWSPAPERS LTD
AJ knocked out the Brixton Body Snatcher in their 2015 rematchCredit: Getty
Joshua is eyeing another ‘conclusive’ knockout in his third clash with WhyteCredit: MATCHROOM BOXING
Six years later they met in the pros for the British title and 33-year-old AJ got the victory with a vicious uppercut knockout.
Once Joshua deals with comeback opponent Jermaine Franklin on Saturday, the deciding bout is set to be announced.
And the build-up has already begun with Joshua ranking the brutal stoppage higher than his world title wins over Charles Martin, Dominic Breazeale, Wladimir Klitschko and Kubrat Pulev – based on the state he left his nemesis in.
When DAZN asked for his favourite KO, ruthless Joshua said: “I would say the Dillian Whyte uppercut.
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“Klitschko was stopped on his feet, the ref jumped in.
“Dillian was rendered unconscious, they had to put him in the recovery position.
“That is a conclusive knockout.”
Even after two fights, there is respect between the reformed bad boys.
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In 2019, Whyte boxed on AJ’s Saudi Arabia undercard and flew over to the Middle East and sat next to his enemy’s mum.
The pair shared a warm six-hour flight and when the two fighters met they enjoyed a private moment.
When Whyte beat Franklin in November, he fairly assumed he had secured the AJ fight next.
But promoter Eddie Hearn chucked in a curveball when it was revealed Franklin – who did impress plenty of people in the 12-round fight – was getting the big-money shot on the back of a loss.
Credit: SUNSPORT
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And the Brixton Body Snatcher did not hold back, telling SunSport: “Everyone was told, all the boxing fans, that the winner of me and Franklin fights AJ.
“So this is a f***ed up thing.
“I would have been better off losing the Franklin fight and getting the AJ fight!
“It’s no surprise to me that they have chosen April 1 for this battle of the fools.” More