Eddie Hearn fears Anthony Joshua will only be able to face one heavyweight on his "dream" fight list of Dillian Whyte, Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury.
Joshua lost to Oleksandr Usyk in a second consecutive showdown in August in and now faces a significant challenge to return to the pinnacle of the sport having reigned as a two-time world champion. Several big names have been thrust into Joshua's sphere for his comeback bout, including British rival Fury, with whom negotiations collapsed for a title clash in December this year.
'AJ' does not want to make a comeback against a lowly-ranked opponent and is eyeing a series of fights to keep himself as a leading contender including a rematch with former rival Whyte. But his long-term promoter Hearn has suggested it might not be possible but believes any shot at Wilder has the potential to be the biggest fight in the division.
“If you’re looking at three fights next for which you hope for him to have, maybe you go Dillian Whyte, [Deontay] Wilder, Fury," Hearn told Boxing Social when discussing Joshua's potential options for 2023. "I mean that would be the dream year, but probably one of them would be nice the way everything’s going.
“I do feel that AJ – Wilder is just a massive global heavyweight fight. Two titans that the fight could end at any moment. I think it’s a tremendous fight." Joshua was clearly frustrated after coming up short against Usyk for a second time lashing out by tossing his rival's belts to the ground before launching into an X-rated rant.
Despite failing to get his revenge, Joshua has remained in training and was initially eyeing a return to the ring in December before it was derailed by the missed deadline for a potential challenge to Fury. Now it is expected that he will return in the new year with several fighters calling for a shot at him including Otto Wallin and Chris Arreola.
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However Hearn has revealed it is currently Whyte who is the front runner to receive the call providing he gets past his upcoming test against Jermaine Franklin at Wembley Arena on November 26. "Originally the plan was that fight in December if that Tyson Fury fight could get made but now it hasn't and probably January or February is when it gets made," Hearn told the DAZN Boxing Show.
"Talking to him the other day he wants to fight Dillian Whyte and his next fight is November 29 so we will see how that plays out. But Dillian Whyte is the front runner if he comes through. There is the Wilder situation which is definitely a fight he is looking at, and I don't think he wants to start looking outside of the top ten of the governing bodies. But I do think he wants a real fight and those are all real fights that you could see him in."
