By Tim Parsons
Anthony Joshua is ready to risk his IBF and WBA heavyweight titles in a lucrative rematch against Wladimir Klitschko.
Joshua was successful in his first clash with Klitschko after knocking him out in 11 exciting rounds. The unbeaten Londoner who has won all his 19 fights inside the scheduled distance, struggled to get rid of his very experienced opponent who had previously dominated the division for 11 long years. Klitschko’s reign was brought to an abrupt end by Tyson Fury in 2015 after the former gypsy king out-boxed him for a landslide victory in November 2015.
Fury had been a clear under dog for that fight but used his longer reach and youthful mobility to outwork Klitschko and render the former reigning champion clueless for most of the 12 round contest. The Ukranian had always enjoyed advantages of reach and height against former opponents, but was unable to get any meaningful rhythm against Klitschko who controlled the fight with effective boxing and good movement. The victory was clear, but was not as interesting or conclusive as the defeat inflicted on Klitschko by Anthony Joshua.
Fury never looked in danger of losing his contest, but Anthony Joshua came very close to being stopped when he was knocked down in the fifth round by Klitschko who was unable to capitalise on the knock down. Joshua went behind on points for the next few rounds despite eventually avenging the knock down he suffered with a knock down of his own in the next round. It was a difficult for Joshua who many tipped to loose if the fight went to the second half. The general opinion of boxing pundits were wrong because Joshua’s determination was so strong that he still pulled off one of the best wins seen in a British ring.
REMATCH CLAUSE
With a rematch clause in their original contract, Joshua and his team are not even waiting for Klitschko to return from a Miami holiday he has taken since the fight to recover. Joshua reportedly earned £15m from that fight, and his promoter Eddie Hearn is already planning ahead for a lucrative rematch. He knows the first fight was so good that the public would love to see it again, and already has his eyes set on October 28 for the rematch at the principality stadium. The rematch will generate a lot of money that might even rival the huge amount made for the first fight, but it comes with a big risk. Klitschko is known to come back strong from defeats and has avenged two defeats over a decade ago to regain his WBO title when knocked out by Lamon Brewster in 2004.
The Ukranian had trained very hard for the rematch against Tyson Fury, only for Fury to pull out of the first rematch date set and also withdraw for the replaced fight date due to mental health issues and a drug test failure by Ukad. We will never know how the rematch would have gone, but we do know that Wladimir fought a much better fight against Anthony Joshua than he did in his first fight with Tyson Fury. Fury has since been comparing his performance against Klitschko with that of Joshua, using this to boast that he would easily beat the Londoner when they eventually meet in the ring. It’s all talk because Klitschko’s mind set was different and stronger in his preparation for Joshua, especially after going through three training camps.
Joshua and his promoter, Eddie Hearn, are taking a big risk in going for the rematch with Klitschko because the fight could go either way. However, it shows Joshua and Hearn’s determination to go for the best fight and give the public a good show. Joshua is clearly determined to improve on his first performance against Klitschko, but it is still a big risk, though with huge financial rewards.