International Boxing Hall of Fame inductee, Carl Froch, is yet to be convinced that Anthony Joshua has even the slightest chance of being able to regain his place at the top of the heavyweight division.
Joshua suffered back-to-back defeats to Usyk in 2021 and 2022 and saw him change trainers from Rob McCracken to Robert Garcia.
Now, ‘AJ’ is showing faith in his third new new cornerman, Derrick James. After a lacklustre debut with James against Jermaine Franklin, Joshua is aiming for three fights in 2023, the last of which being the long-awaited clash with Deontay Wilder, in Saudi Arabia.
On the ‘Up Front With Simon Jordan’ podcast, Froch admitted that he doesn’t give his fellow Brit the ‘slightest of chances’ of beating ‘The Bronze Bomber’, as well as in a proposed domestic showdown with WBC champion, Tyson Fury.
“You can’t put Anthony Joshua in with them [the greats] at the minute, it’s not his fault. Hopefully he can, not even prove everybody wrong, but hopefully he can do something and finish his career on a real high.
But, from what I have seen in his rematch with [Oleksandr] Usyk and in that comeback fight against [Jermaine] Franklin, I just don’t see anything that would convince me, even in the slightest iota, that he has got a chance in coming anywhere near to beating Tyson Fury, or Deontay Wilder.”
Before the supposed Wilder fight, Joshua and promoter, Eddie Hearn, appear intent on fighting in August, to further gel with James. It seemed set for Dillian Whyte to be in the opposing corner, but recent complications over a rematch clause in the contract have brought doubt to the clash.
Other contenders for Joshua’s second outing of the year are rumoured to be Agit Kabayel and Otto Wallin.
