Veteran promoter, Bob Arum, has revealed that he believes Jared Anderson will announce himself as a top contender next year as he continues his rise through the heavyweight ranks.
Jared ‘Big Baby’ Anderson is promoted by Arum’s Top Rank and has had a perfect start to his career since turning professional in 2019. At just 23-years-old, Anderson is undefeated with thirteen wins to his name, all thirteen coming by way of knockout.
In his most recent fight, the Ohio-born prospect fought his toughest opponent to date in the form of American gatekeeper, Jerry Forrest.
Forrest had drawn with Zhilei Zhang and Michael Hunter and gone the distance with Kubrat Pulev, Carlos Takam and Jermaine Franklin. It took Anderson just two rounds to become the first man in almost ten years to knock out Forrest.
As a result, Anderson is fast on his way to becoming a household name in the States and has been ranked as the current #15 heavyweight in the world by the WBC.
In an interview with Sky Sports, Arum told of his high expectations for “Big Baby” in 2023, and that he expects Anderson to announce himself as a title contender next year.
“This is going to be a big year for Jared. He’s come along. He’s gone from a prospect to a contender, or the fringe of being a contender. I look at ’23 as the year Jared Anderson will become a real top contender for the heavyweight title.
I think the kid is massively, massively talented. I think that he will really shine next year.”
Anderson’s ringwalks are also a sight to behold. In just thirteen fights he has walked to the ring as a prisoner, a chef, Chucky (from Child’s Play) and the Grinch.
Yet despite his fun outside of the ring, his skills inside of it are no joke. So much so, that WBC champion Tyson Fury has been sparring Anderson, since he was just 19-years-old.
Soon Anderson will be eyeing Fury up as an opponent rather than a sparring partner, and has even called out one of The Gypsy King’s recent opponents after his victory against Forrest.
The talented up-and-comer called out Dillian Whyte and begged “Can y’all feed me this bum?!”, however it seems Whyte is more focused on pushing for a rematch with Anthony Joshua.