By Shaun Murphy-
Anthony Joshua should take the advice of former world heavyweight champion David Haye not to fight Tyson Fury next, but rather pursue a rematch with Dillian Whyte.
Haye was ringside for Joshua’s win over Jermaine Franklin on Saturday night at the O2 Arena in London, feels the Londoner is not ready to meet Tyson Fury yet.
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Haye, who has previously selected Joshua to emerge victorious in a potential clash with Tyson Fury, has had a change of heart ever since Ukrianian Olegsander Usyk inflicted two consecutive defeats against the 2012 olympic gold medalist and former undisputed world champion.
Joshua is now in the lucky position to be able to face Fury following his recent win against Jermaine Franklin, but his performance was not impressive enough to suggest he has what it takes to competitively share a ring with Tyson Fury.
His two defeats to Olegsander Usyk showed that he is not quite in the championship class his former titles suggested because a dominant champion would have been expected to put in a better performance than that and defeat Usyk, at least the second time.
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Eddie Hearn is yearning for an opportunity to stage a rich clash between Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury this summer for the Wbc belt, but without the other belts on the line which would otherwise have restored Joshua’s former titles to him
“Isn’t Tyson Fury fighting someone else?” Haye responded when asked by Mirror Fighting if it’s too early for Joshua under his new coaching regime to face Fury. “I’d prefer off the strength of that last victory that was very comfortable to see him in an uncomfortable fight first because one thing you can guarantee in against [Deontay] Wilder, Tyson Fury it’s uncomfortable.
“It’s an uncomfortable fight that he’s going to have to have to be victorious. When’s the last time he was uncomfortable? Against Usyk and he lost. He wasn’t uncomfortable against Franklin, it was a comfortable victory. Dillian [Whyte] I believe would make him uncomfortable.
“And it’s how he deals in the discomfort zone that will determine how he will deal with the likes of Fury, Wilder or Usyk again. He’s going to understand that ‘I’m going to be uncomfortable dealing with these guys but I’m going to have to deal with it.
“I’d like to see before he starts fighting the top players go in there with Dillian Whyte who is a top player himself. He’s had a victory, lots of spice because they’re both from the UK. Controversial first fight, Dillian had one arm in the first fight so I’m looking forward to that showdown.”
David Haye advices Joshua aim for Whyte before Fury Image:Imdb.com
Joshua’s victory over Franklin was decisive but not good enough for him to be matched against Tyson Fury yet. The only benefit from staging such a fight next is money.
“I thought he won conclusively, I think he ticked all the boxes in terms of coming back from a back to back defeats,” Haye continued. “I think that a fight with Dillian Whyte is the obvious next step for him, I like Anthony, always have done, want him to be the best version of himself and I want to see the killer come back.
”I want to see the Anthony Joshua that fought Dillian Whyte at the O2 Arena all those years ago – I want that AJ back. I want the one who can let his hands go, who really doesn’t mind getting hit but will make sure that he hits you twice as hard, that’s the Anthony Joshua that I want to see back. I think that Dillian will either beat him, or bring the best out of him.
“That’s what we need, fights that force him [out of his shell]. Franklin didn’t have the fire power, didn’t have the size or the ability to really put him under pressure. He caught him with a couple of shots here and there but you need more than one or two shots against AJ you really need to put it on him and Dillian can, he’s done it in the past.
“It’s a great fight and a great opportunity now with both of them coming off wins against the same person, who can take it to that next level? I’m really excited for that fight and the obvious fight after that is obviously fighting for the titles [against the likes of Fury].”
Dillian Whyte and Anthony Joshua have a long rivalry Image:skysports.com
A rematch against Whyte will also make a lot of money, though not as much as against Fury.
However, it will provide Joshua with the opportunity to develop on his strengths and build his confidence, instead of rushing into a fight against Tyson Fury now.
Whyte is established as a game enough opponent to give Joshua a good run for his money, and wil fancy any his chances of revenge after seeing Joshua’s last three performances.
Joshua will almost definitely win another fight against the Brixton heavyweight if he applies himself in the fight, as he is most likely to do since he holds a win over the South London boxer, which will give him a psychological edge in the fight.
Joshua needs an opponent who will make him dig deep and prepare him for the kind of absorbing fight a clash with Fury will demand.
The ormer world champ’s powerful right hand is a threat to any heavyweight in the division, but his critics have lamented the fact he often does not throw enough explosive punches, and is generally tentative for too long in big fights before bursting into life.
Former boxer and critic, Danny Benn added to Haye’s words and said: ” Joshua is made for Tyson Fury, and needs a lot more practise before he shares a ring with him. I said all the time he was in negotiations for a unification fight with Fury before the courts intervened for Deontey Wilder to meet Fury or a third time that Joshua was n where ready for Fury.
”I said at the time he needs a minimum of two good fights before he faces Fury. But he didn’t do enough in both fights against Usyk. he is just too robotic, he needs to come forward like he used to and be a lot more aggressive and confident in his attack . He needs to practise real championship attacks before he faces someone like Fury, who is head and shoulders against all the heavyweights at the moment”.
Joshua is clearly missing the belts he once had round his waist which made him a proud champion, but those belts are not within his grasp at the moment.
Once a favourite to defeat any heavyweight in the world let alone the Uk, Joshua will be an overwhelming underdog against Tyson Fury anytime soon and still needs to restore his reputation despite the recent uninspiring points victory against Jermaine Franklin.
David Haye is absolutely right that Joshua will be wiser to target Dillian Whyte first in what will be a more interested fight than the one sided bashing he is likely to get from Tyson who will disrespect him before, during, and after the fight.
Tyson Fury’s image has taken a slight hit after he appears to have avoided the long awaited unification clash with Olegsander Usyk originally scheduled for April 29, due to poor negotiation.
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