Deontay Wilder has named Anthony Joshua as his number one opponent pick after being asked who he could face if he beat Robert Helenius in his next bout.
Talk to FightHype.comThe former WBC heavyweight champion also mentioned Andy Ruiz Jr and Oleksandr Usyk as potential future opponents, but emphasized Joshua is the fight he wants – and he knows his fans do too.
“You have [Oleksandr] Usyks, [Andy] Ruiz, [Anthony] Joshuas – they’re the top three guys that everyone wants to see, especially Joshua, it’s the number one fight in the world for me, me and him. “
“Everywhere I go, all I hear is people saying me and Joshua, and that’s the number one fight for them too. That being said, if that’s the number one match in the world for me then that’s what I want. “
Wilder faces Robert Helenius at the Barclays Center in New York this Saturday. It looks like Wilder will be retiring for a short while after a crushing defeat in a three-part fight with Tyson Fury, but this return marks his fight back to the top.
Two-time heavyweight champion ‘AJ’ is rumored to face a top fifteen ranked opponent in January/February 2023 after talks for a potential ‘Battle of Britain’ superfight ‘ with Fury having failed last month. Joshua is about to lose his rematch with Oleksandr Usyk in Saudi Arabia in August.
Wilder and Joshua were in talks to fight for the undisputed title in 2019 but that never materialized and looked even more unlikely after Joshua was stunningly stopped by Andy Ruiz Jr. at Madison Square Garden, losing his crown of unity.
Since then, negotiations over a potential couple have been unsuccessful but perhaps a little more promising. With all the titles tied and both men on the ‘way back’, it looks like Joshua vs Wilder could be a fight we could see in 2023.
