Eddie Hearn reveals Anthony Joshua will sign a deal to fight Oleksandr Usyk THIS WEEK after the collapse of his huge showdown with Tyson Fury… with heavyweight title defence set to be held in London this September
- Anthony Joshua’s long awaited scrap with Tyson Fury was put on the backburner
- Fury has to face Deontay Wilder for a third time and Joshua is moving on
- He is set to face WBO mandatory challenger Oleksandr Usyk later this year
- Eddie Hearn believes the fight against the Ukrainian will happen in September
Anthony Joshua will sign to fight WBO challenger Oleksandr Usyk this week with the bout likely to take place in London this September, according to Eddie Hearn.
AJ’s promoter has shed light on the details of the British heavyweight’s next move having been forced to shelve plans for a massive unification showdown with Tyson Fury.
Hearn told DAZN: ‘I can tell you that this week, that this is a more confident footing than the Joshua – Fury negotiations, because I know Alex Krassyuk very well, and I know Usyk very well.
Anthony Joshua is set to take on WBO mandatory challenger Oleksandr Usyk next
Usyk, seen here beating Derek Chisora, is a dangerous opponent, admits Eddie Hearn
‘This week that fight will be signed. We’re looking at September in London. Just finalising the details. It’s a great fight, a dangerous fight, it’s not the one we necessarily wanted or expected.
‘But it’s a high level heavyweight fight. It’s a unified heavyweight champion against the undisputed cruiserweight champion, and on we go with that fight – it’s a big event.’
Fury has been told by an arbitration judge that he has to fight Wilder for a third time, as per a stipulation in their previous contract.
Eddie Hearn revealed that the heavyweight showdown could take place in London
After months of build-up to what many fans had hoped would be a unification bout between Fury and Joshua, both sides have cast blame for the deal falling through.
When questioned about the delay in AJ accepting the Usyk fight after it became clear Fury was off the table, Hearn said: ‘Give AJ the credit. I always bang on the drum that this young man is willing to fight everybody.
‘It was more like not having anywhere to breathe. It was terrible timing from the WBO, but they were just doing their job.’
AJ beat Kubrat Pulev in December last year and has been frustrated on the sidelines ever since, hopeful that a deal with Fury could be struck.
He will now have to put that disappointment behind him and focus on Usyk, who will enter the fight as a significantly smaller fighter but possesses unquestionable quality.