3 reasons why Wilder/Joshua is still one of the biggest fights in boxing

[fistandfury]

1. Everyone wants to see it, like Lewis/Tyson, or Khan/Brook it won't matter to us that they are past their primes, we want to see that fight, and the box office, PPV gate, sponsors, and the purse will all reflect a massive global event

2. It's the biggest and safest fight for both of them, Wilder/AJ at the MGM Grand would sell, if you make the fight stateside, it's an international event, and would be ripe for an interim title boost, especially with Usyk most likely letting go of at least 1 of those belts.

3. It has much more intrigue than Fury/AJ, both men are chinny, both men can crack, both men are boxing icons in their own right, future hall of famers, and this literally their last shot at relevancy as they enter the twilights of their careers.

Will it happen? Probably not, but I can't think of 5 fights that would interest the public more than this fight.

[M312]

Wilder will need to get through Dave Allen first

[real raw]

That fight is worthless now

[Willow The Wisp]

This post would have made perfect sense in 2022, and maybe in 2023, but even that's a stretch. But in 2026, it's no more valid than pairing Lennox Lewis vs. Rid**** Bowe. The time has come and gone, the ship has sailed.
A.J. is younger and has half the fights; and he my have one more charge of the brigade in him if matched properly; but Deontay Wilder is just too past prime to launch his famous artillery.

I certainly agree that this was one of the biggest never-happened matches of this century. I always felt that Josh would have his way until Wilder nailed him, and that he, at some point would.

[Toffee]

AJ v Fury is a bigger fight than AJ vs Wilder.

I think you can convince yourself (and the broader public) that they've got something left, while I think even the most casual fan can't be convinced that Wilder is still a boxer.

Even a couple of years ago AJ and Wilder in opposite corners had huge appeal. It would still sell now, but there's no real demand for it.

[PRINCEKOOL]

Anthony Joshua does not need Deontay Wilder, to create a big block buster heavyweight fight 'Joshua's potential comeback fight in 2026, is going to be the biggest single boxing event happening when it drops. Regardless of which fighter Anthony Joshua fights, it will be a mega fight. The intrigue surrounding this conclusive stage of Joshua's career in my opinion is going to be very intense, people within the boxing community now are all aware that this is the conclusive saga to his career'.

Deontay Wilder vs Anthony Joshua is still a mega boxing event 'but as other people have suggested in this thread? Anthony Joshua vs Tyson Fury, is maybe 5 times as big on a global scale. And we must also factor in that people within society live in the moment, there is a cliche expression? You are only as good as your last fight'.

Note: Anthony Joshua has all the ability in the world, to in my opinion achieve a win against 99.99% of the top level heavyweights in the divisions 'he is still the only double jeopardy threat of this era. Meaning he has proven elite level boxing skills and power. No other heavyweight fighter has that combination of abilities, not even Oleksandr Uysk who may be a great skill for skill boxer but he does not have elite level power'.

So what can I say? Anthony Joshua is still a wanted man in the heavyweight divisions 'the three most wanted men, and targets in the Heavyweight divisions are Oleksandr Uysk, Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua. And then Deontay Wilder is the 4th most wanted man, but he is a few levels below those other three fighters in terms of significance'.

You have fighters like Dave Allen being considered as opponents for Deontay Wilder 'in comparison, Anthony Joshua has the entire heavyweight divisions as his potential opponents. He has entire World continents desiring him to fight in their land'.

I don't think there is any other professional boxer currently active with that level of global scope 'Oleksandr Uysk may be the Undisputed Heavyweight Champion, but he is not on the same level as ether Anthony Joshua or Tyson Fury as global boxing super stars'.

I think it is abundantly clear that both Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury have as individual fighters transcended the world title belts 'they have suffered losses in their careers, but still have a major influence and a magnetic field in the boxing game'.

Anthony Joshua was beaten in his last fight by Daniel Dubois 'it was his worst technical performance ever, but still a courageous effort. Anthony Joshua is in a better position in his career right now than Dubois. Daniel Dubois is not a wanted man in the game, he is a front runner at top level and everyone in the sport is aware of that now'.

To conclude: People must also accept that both Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder 'have never wanted to fight Anthony Joshua. Once upon a time they both fought each other to avoid fighting Joshua, because stylistically they believed each other to be the easy challenge. And currently present day? The two single biggest factors stopping the Fury vs Joshua or Wilder vs Joshua fights, are Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder'.

Those fights can in all honestly be potentially made and agreed within a 30 minute phone call time frame 'neither Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua or Deontay Wilder have any world title belts. The fight has never been more easier and straight forward to make, but the facts are? Fury and Wilder are extremely apprehensive of Anthony Joshua and his abilities'.

Tyson Fury has recently tactically retired in order to avoid fighting Anthony Joshua, and Deontay Wilder has gone into radio silence on the topic of Joshua 'yes those fights are mega boxing events, but as they say? It takes two to tango, Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder both suffer from stage fright when it comes to challenging Anthony Joshua' etc.