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‘Most Avoided Heavyweight’ Has Been Told By Turki Alalshikh That He Will Fight Anthony Joshua Next

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Turki Alalshikh Anthony Joshua

Anthony Joshua may have found his next opponent.

‘AJ’ suffered a shock fifth round knockout defeat against newly crowned IBF heavyweight champion Daniel Dubois at Wembley Stadium last September, but has confirmed he will be making a return to the sport this year.

It was heavily speculated that the 35-year-old would be facing Tyson Fury next until ‘The Gypsy King’ announced his retirement from boxing at the beginning of January.

Eddie Hearn Finally Reveals What Really Happened In Anthony Joshua-Martin Bakole Spar - Seconds Out

JUST IN: Oleksandr Usyk Finally Reacts To Tyson Fury’s Shock Retirement After Claiming He Was Robbed

The man standing opposite Joshua in his next contest could have just been revealed though, after a heavyweight powerhouse claimed he has had his next fight confirmed by Turki Alalshikh.

Martin Bakole has picked up 21 wins in 22 professional contests, securing 16 knockout victories in the process and is on a run of three stoppages all inside six rounds. His last outing came in August when he blasted out highly rated American prospect Jared Anderson inside five rounds.

Speaking on talkSPORT, Bakole – who has picked up the tag of the most avoided man in the division – revealed he has been advised by Alalshikh that his next fight will come against two-time heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua in Africa.

“I love that fight, and I would like to say thank you to [His] Excellency because he’s behind this. He said ‘Martin we have a big fight in America, finish with [Efe] Ajagba and then Anthony Joshua is next in Africa.’

“Even I heard Anthony Joshua said he needs to fight in Africa, so all he need was a promoter or someone to promote that fight. Between me and him in Africa that will be a good fight.”

Bakole has also secured impressive wins against Olympic gold medalist Tony Yoka in 2022 and Carlos Takam in 2023. His maiden career defeat came at the hands of Michael Hunter, who stopped him in the final round of their fight back in October 2018.

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BOXING

Oleksandr Usyk Finally Reacts To Tyson Fury’s Shock Retirement After Claiming He Was Robbed

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Tyson Fury Oleksandr Usyk

Tyson Fury retired from the sport of boxing at age 36 this year following back-to-back losses against Oleksandr Usyk.

The big man from Morecambe is a two-time world heavyweight champion with statement wins over Wladimir Klitschko and Deontay Wilder. He fell short for the first time in his professional career in May of 2024, battling Usyk for the undisputed title.

In the rematch, the Ukrainian put three of the four major belts on the line after vacating the IBF. He retained them with a unanimous decision, one which Fury branded a ‘robbery.’

Oleksandr Usyk’s Team Finally Reacts To Tyson Fury’s Shock Retirement After Claiming He Was Robbed

READ: “He’s Too Good”: World Champion Makes Major U-Turn And No Longer Wants Oleksandr Usyk Rematch

Less than a month later, ‘The Gypsy King’ would announce he was to hang up the gloves, ending with a phrase highlighting daylight robbery.

“Hi everybody, I’m going to make this short and sweet. I’d like to announce my retirement from boxing, it has been a blast, I’ve loved every single minute of it and I’m going to end with this; Dick Turpin wore a mask.”

Speaking to TalkSPORT, Usyk’s longtime promoter Alex Krassyuk joked that it was the ‘seventh’ time the Brit had announced his retirement.

“I thought it was the seventh time. That was my personal calculation.”

Krassyuk went on to praise Fury and said that he believes fans will see him step through the ropes once more.

“It’s 50/50. He did sound serious, but I can’t be sure he’s out of the ring forever. That’s my personal opinion, my hunch, my feeling. I still can see him fighting. It can be anything, like money, something interesting.

“He’s a champion. He’s strong. He’s well loved and respected in the world of boxing. Why should he quit? I think after six, seven months, he will have a rest and he will probably change his mind.”

Should Fury heavyweight return, he is widely expected to face Anthony Joshua after years of the fight marinating. As for Usyk, he has a keen eye on Daniel Dubois’ IBF title defence against Joseph Parker on February 22, with a match-up against the winner giving him a chance to become undisputed yet again.

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BOXING

Anthony Joshua Has Now Sets His Sights On One Fight After Tyson Fury Retirement Spoils Plans

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Anthony Joshua Tyson Fury

Anthony Joshua is heading towards the end of what has been a hugely successful boxing career.

The Brit reinvigorated the heavyweight division and brought huge numbers of fans to the sport over the last 13 years since he won his gold medal at the Olympics in 2012.

After turning professional, power puncher ‘AJ’ quickly rose up through the ranks to become a world champion and then a unified belt holder. As well as good wins over the likes of Wladimir Klitschko, Dillian Whyte and Aleksandr Povetkin, there were setback losses on the way to Andy Ruiz and then back-to-back defeats to Oleksandr Usyk that left him belt-less.

Anthony Joshua Has Now Sets His Sights On One Fight After Tyson Fury Retirement Spoils Plans

JUST IN: “He’s Too Good”: World Champion Makes Major U-Turn And No Longer Wants Oleksandr Usyk Rematch

His attempt to regain world honours fell short back in September when he lost to Daniel Dubois by 5th round knockout. In the aftermath, many thought the one and only fight left to make was with former champion and fellow British boxing star Tyson Fury, who also twice lost to Usyk.

However, Fury’s retirement announcement in January rather ruined those plans.

Speaking to talkSPORT Boxing, promoter Eddie Hearn revealed that Joshua has moved on from the idea of fighting Fury for now and named the fight he wants.

“Daniel Dubois rematch.”

He then corrected himself and pointed out Joshua was more interested in becoming a three-time world champion than getting his revenge.

“Not even the Dubois rematch. The world heavyweight championship. I think Parker is going to be Dubois so maybe we fight Parker.”

All eyes then turn to February 22 when Dubois puts his IBF title on the line for a second time against former champ Parker. Though Hearn believes the New Zealander will upset the odds, former Parker opponent Derek Chisora backs Dubois.

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BOXING

“He’s Too Good”: World Champion Makes Major U-Turn And No Longer Wants Oleksandr Usyk Rematch

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Oleksandr Usyk

Unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk remains on the hunt for his next opponent after conquering his division.

The 38-year-old from Ukraine retained his WBC, WBA and WBO heavyweight titles in December with a second consecutive points decision victory over Tyson Fury, cementing himself as arguably the greatest heavyweight of his generation.

Usyk appears to have expressed his desire to continue his boxing career instead of walking away from the sport and has stated his desire to move back down to cruiserweight at some point.

Artur Beterbiev Wants To Face Oleksandr Usyk

JUST IN: Francis Ngannou and Deontay Wilder fight on the cards as shock plan emerges

Undisputed light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev declared he would be interested in moving up to face the Ukrainian at 200lbs, in what would be a rematch of their 2007 amateur contest.

“I repeat, from a pure sporting perspective I would be interested in this fight, of course, because we boxed in the Olympics and the World Championships as amateurs.

It would be interesting to try as professionals, not for money, although money would be nice, but my interest in this fight would be purely sporting, much more than monetary. Much more.”

However, the Russian superstar now looks to have made a U-turn on his initial decision. Speaking to FightHub TV, Beterbiev was asked to share his thoughts on a potential rematch with Usyk, claiming the Ukrainian is actually ‘too strong’ for him.

“No, he’s too strong for me you know. He’s like heavyweight you know it’s too strong even if he came back down. He’s too strong [even at cruiserweight], too good.”

The 40-year-old is gearing up to face light heavyweight rival Dmitry Bivol for the second time in their highly anticipated undisputed championship rematch, which takes place on February 22 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Beterbiev got the better of Bivol in their first meeting last October, as he now looks to cement himself as the greatest light heavyweight of his generation.

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BOXING

Francis Ngannou and Deontay Wilder fight on the cards as shock plan emerges

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Francis Ngannou Deontay Wilder

PFL chairman Donn Davis has provided updates on what to expect from Francis Ngannou this year, and a potential ‘hybrid rules’ showdown with Deontay Wilder could be on the cards.

After leaving the UFC back in 2023, Ngannou decided to test his luck in the world of boxing. ‘The Predator’ first went head-to-head with Tyson Fury. Despite dropping the Brit, the former UFC heavyweight champion would go on to lose via split decision. The 38-year-old returned to the squared-circle last year against Anthony Joshua but was brutally knocked out by ‘AJ’ in the second round of their dust-up in Saudi Arabia.

Later that year, Ngannou returned to the Octagon to take on Renan Ferreira and needed just a few minutes to topple the Brazilian giant. The Cameroonian is targeting another fight in boxing this year, but could face Wilder under mixed-rules. ‘The Bronze Bomber’ is widely regarded as one of the hardest-hitting punchers in the history of the sport, but his best days are behind him following back-to-back defeats against Joseph Parker and Zhilei Zhang.

PFL founder gets brutally honest on Francis Ngannou future

READ: Canelo Now Set To Face Undefeated Fighter In May Before Terence Crawford Clash In September

That said, Davis has revealed a fight between the two heavyweight stars could take place with a mixed ruleset – combining both MMA and boxing in what could be a jaw-dropping crossover. He told Sky Sports: “He’s going to fight twice this year – once in MMA, once in boxing. What order?

“I’m not sure. What opponents? We’re working on options. I think Deontay Wilder is one that we’ve talked about, that he has talked about. Some sort of mixed rules or alternating rounds or just taking one aspect away from MMA rules. I think Deontay Wilder is particularly interesting but you have to get the fans to understand it and it be a legitimate sport.

“We view it as upside but there is risk. There is no free lunch in the world whatever you do. Could he get hurt? Could he diminish his reputation? Could it delay certain schedules? Could it hurt other opponents? Of course, there is no free lunch. He’s now the most beloved fighter because of the challenges and the risks he’s taken so we view the upside as greater than the downside.”

Davis was also quick to sing Ngannou’s praises following a successful return to the cage against Ferreira. “I’m not even sure Francis knew he was still the baddest man on the planet,” he said. “If we could all see into his soul, I’m not so sure walking into that cage that he knew. He showed he was.

“To do it after defying UFC, after blowing up the boxing world [with his split decision loss to Fury] and going through a personal tragedy [the death of his young son]. Then to show [that] in under one round against [Ferreira], who’s 6’8″ and a black belt… wow, he’s the baddest man on the planet, no question.”

While Ngannou’s next fight is yet to be determined, Wilder is reportedly planning a major return to boxing. Boxing journalist Manouk Akopyan recently revealed that he’s looking at April for his next fight against an opponent who will be named in the near future.

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BOXING

Canelo Now Set To Face Undefeated Fighter In May Before Terence Crawford Clash In September

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Terence Crawford Canelo Alvarez

Saul ‘Canelo‘ Alvarez is preparing for a big year in the sport of boxing, with his usual May and September dates now taking shape.

The 34-year-old is currently unified super-middleweight world champion and, despite previously dismissing the fight, has recently been in talks with fellow four-division titlist Terence Crawford for a fight this September. The match-up will see Crawford jump up two weight classes from his last outing.

Canelo intends to keep his usual fight date around Cinco De Mayo in May before facing ‘Bud’ on the weekend of Mexican Independence Day later in the year.

William Scull confirms talks with Canelo Team and is set to be his next opponent | Marca

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Speaking to Boxing Azteca, his longtime trainer and manager Eddy Reynoso named William Scull (23-0, 9 KOs) and Christian Mbilli (28-0, 23 KOs) as the two top options for May.

“Well, there are several, there is William Scull, there is the other classified by the WBO, Mbilli, I think he lives in Canada. They are the ones that are more or less there right now, but there is nothing concrete. You can also hear about Crawford for September, but we still don’t really have anything sure until about 15 days or so.”

Scull is the current IBF World Champion in the super-middleweight ranks having picked up the belt when Canelo was stripped due to not facing him as mandatory challenger. A win over the Cuban fighting out of Germany would give him the chance to become undisputed again, adding more to the Crawford mega-fight.

Christian Mbilli - Solide 28-0 (Highlights / Knockouts)

Cameroonian-French Mbilli is currently ranked number one with the WBC and WBA and two with the WBO. He presents a more dangerous option than the tricky Scull with 23 knockouts from 28 wins.

As for Crawford, he recently confirmed that he will not be taking a fight before September when he is expected to go in with the elite Mexican.

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BOXING

Former Multi-weight World Champion Didn’t Hesitate When Asked If Anthony Joshua Can Ever Become World Champion Again

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Anthony Joshua

Roy Jones Jr has spoken about whether or not he thinks Anthony Joshua can reclaim a world title before the end of his career.

Joshua is one of the most decorated heavyweights of his generation. He is a former Olympic gold medalist who started racking up knockout wins as soon as he turned over. By 2015 he was British champion after knocking out Dillian Whyte, and then he stopped Charles Martin to pick up his first world title.

He added further belts with a victory over Wladimir Klitschko. A second unification with Joseph Parker saw him go the distance for the first time in his career, but the prize was to add the third of the four major world titles to his collection.

Roy Jones Says Anthony Joshua Would Be 'Stupid' To Face Rival: "Who Thinks He Can Win?"

READ: “They Said I Was Scared”: Floyd Mayweather Admits He’s Glad He Avoided One Welterweight Champion

He lost all those belts in 2019 to Andy Ruiz but won them back six months later in the rematch, then lost again to Oleksandr Usyk in 2021, and failed to regain the belts in a return fight in 2022.

Although he rebuilt with more impressive KO wins, he lost in his attempt to become a three-time world champion when he was stopped inside five rounds by IBF ruler Daniel Dubois back in September.

Speaking to Covers, former multi-weight world champion Jones Jr suggested things would have been different had he coached ‘AJ.’

“Of course things would have been different if I had the chance to work with (Joshua), but you can’t blame people for their opinion and the way they do things. I feel bad the way they thought about me working with him, I know what I could have helped him out with and how much I could have changed him but I can’t change what doesn’t want to be changed.”

Asked about his future, Jones Jr still backed the Brit to get back to the top.

“It’s still possible he becomes a world champion, he still has the heart, he’s still got the athletic ability, so I think he could.”

Right now Joshua has no fight scheduled but many hope Tyson Fury will come out of retirement and the pair will have a legacy-defining showdown to settle their long feud once and for all.

As for becoming champion again, the only current options to do that are Dubois and Usyk, neither of which ‘AJ’ would step through the ropes as a favourite.

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BOXING

“That’s How Much They Would Pay Me”: David Benavidez Leaks Details Of Fight Offer Sent From Canelo

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David Benavidez Canelo Alvarez

David Benavidez is still hopeful of facing Canelo Alvarez one day.

Benavidez has chased a fight against Canelo for a number of years, but it has never materialised and ‘The Mexican Monster’ has since moved up to light heavyweight.

The closest that the boxing world seemed to be to getting the fight was in early 2024, when Alvarez was searching for his next opponent after his victory over Jermell Charlo.

David Benavidez Leaks Details Of Fight Offer Sent From Canelo: “That’s How Much They Would Pay Me”

JUST IN: “They Said I Was Scared”: Floyd Mayweather Admits He’s Glad He Avoided One Welterweight Champion

Benavidez has now explained to All The Smoke Fight that he was approached for the clash, and revealed how much he was offered.

“I always knew I was a problem for him because I was never at the forefront when he mentioned fights. I knew one day people would ask for that fight. They offered him 70 million to fight me, that’s before pay-per-view.

“He pays the guys a flat fee, they had offered me 5 million dollars, I said cool. Sampson Lewkowicz called us before the [Jaime] Munguia fight and said would you be willing to fight a flat fee of 5 million dollars, no pay-per-view. I said yes.”

Benavidez then stated how he believes the offer may have been a ploy.

“We had agreed then we never heard back. They were calling the bait out. They wanted to see if I said yes or no. I think they thought I was going to say ‘no I’m not going to fight for 5 million dollars, this fight is worth way more.’ I called the bluff.

“I said yes and that was the last time we ever heard about that fight. This fight is inevitable, everybody is asking for it. It’s the biggest fight that can possibly be made. I’m not scared of Canelo. I feel like I can beat him.”

Benavidez returns to action this weekend when he takes on David Morrell, with a victory placing him first in line to face the winner of the undisputed rematch between Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol later that month.

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BOXING

“They Said I Was Scared”: Floyd Mayweather Admits He’s Glad He Avoided One Welterweight Champion

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Floyd Mayweather Jr

Floyd Mayweather Jr is one of the few fighters in boxing history to walk away from the sport with an unblemished professional record.

The 47-year-old from Grand Rapids, Michigan won world titles five weight divisions during his tenure, defeating the likes of Manny Pacquiao, Oscar De La Hoya and Miguel Cotto. His unique defensive style earned him a place as one of, if not the greatest fighter of all time.

Although he faced an array of great fighters throughout his career, ‘Money’ was once accused of ‘being afraid’ of a showdown with Antonio Margarito, which was reportedly due to happen back in 2006.

Boxing News: Floyd Mayweather talks Antonio Margarito

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In an interview with Marca, Mayweather was asked to explain why this fight did not go ahead, as he claims he was ‘glad’ to not face the three-time world welterweight champion.

“Antonio Margarito said over and over again that I was afraid of him. He was pressing, and he wanted to fight so badly, because he was beating fighters with loaded gloves (with ‘casts’), so I’m glad God didn’t let that fight happen.

Because you don’t know what kind of effect it would have had on me. Those (punches) would have wreaked havoc after my boxing career was over. He could have ended up killing me in the ring, you don’t know what could happen. So sometimes you have certain signals (to face fighters or not), I was never afraid of him and at that particular moment it didn’t make sense for us to fight”

Just before he was due to face Shane Mosley in a defence of his WBA light middleweight title in 2009, Margarito was found with illegally wrapped hands that had to be re-wrapped three times to make them legal. Despite this, Mosley went on to stop Margarito in the ninth round to capture the WBA title, although things could have been very different for ‘Sugar’ Shane if it wasn’t for his trainer Naazim Richardson who spotted the issue.

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BOXING

“You’d Have To Be So Stupid”: Former World Champion Gives Crawford ‘Zero Chance’ Against Canelo

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Terence Crawford Canelo Alvarez

A Former super lightweight world champion has had their say on the upcoming mega-fight between Canelo Alvarez and Terence Crawford.

‘Bud’ is set to challenge Canelo for his unified WBC, WBA and WBO super middleweight titles later this year, although an official announcement is yet to be made. The 37-year-old from Omaha, Nebraska faces his biggest test yet as he bids to become a five-weight world champion in what’s been a glittering career.

After months of speculation, the pound-for-pound stars have reportedly agreed to face each other in one of the biggest fights in boxing.

Former World Champion Gives Crawford ‘Zero Chance’ Against Canelo: “You’d Have To Be So Stupid”

READ: David Benavidez Reveals Details Of ‘Legendary’ Spar That Made Him 100% Certain He Beats Canelo

It has captured the attention of a number of prominent figures within the sport, including Rolly Romero, who held the WBA title at 140lbs between 2023 and 2024.

Speaking to ESNEWS, Romero made no mistake in backing the Mexican icon to prevail, claiming you would have to be ‘stupid’ to give Crawford any chance.

“Let me ask you this … Who’s a better fighter, Floyd Mayweather or Terence Crawford? … You’re gonna compare a 168lb solid grown man Canelo to fight Terence Crawford?

All the people who think Crawford would even have a single chance against Canelo, they’re f*****g stupid. It’s not even close. If anyone truly believes Crawford will beat Canelo I will bet them any amount of money. They have weight classes for a reason.”

Crawford is faced with a monumental task when he steps up to 168lbs to face Canelo, who is unbeaten in his last five outings with victories over Gennady Golovkin, Jermell Charlo and Jaime Munguia. They are due to clash this September in Las Vegas, with the Allegiant Stadium emerging as the rumoured location.

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