Barry Hearn, founder of Matchroom, makes it clear that former two-time heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua “can’t afford another loss” if he wants to be a top player at the weight class.
Joshua, with three defeats on his record, is looking to return after suffering back to back decision losses to WBO, IBF, IBO, WBA champion Oleksandr Usyk.
The British star is looking to resume his career in the first quarter of 2023.
“He is at a crossroads in his career. He can’t afford another loss,” Barry Hearn told Sky Sports.
No opponent has been named, as Joshua is once again searching for a new head trainer. For his last fight, Joshua used veteran coach Robert Garcia – who replaced Joshua’s career-long trainer Robert McCracken.
The frontrunner to become the opponent is Dillian Whyte, who Joshua knocked out in seven rounds back in 2015.
Tyson Fury, who holds the WBC heavyweight title, is heading into a potential full division unification with Usyk.
Win or lose, one of the biggest fights for Fury is a showdown with Joshua – but Joshua obviously needs to continue winning.
The elder Hearn believes the contest will come off by the end of the coming year.
“The fight we all want to see eventually is AJ against Fury. You’ll get stories – Tyson will say the fight is never going to happen, Joshua will say he’d rather fight Dillian Whyte,” Hearn said.
“Forget all of that. This fight has to happen, and I think it does happen at the tail-end of 2023, for all the marbles.”