After over a month of hype, things have gone somewhat quiet on the Anthony Joshua vs Deontay Wilder front, which has been touted to happen in Saudi Arabia this December.
All parties involved have maintained the blockbuster clash will take place, despite the fact there has not yet reportedly been any official offer made to either man.
And in an exclusive interview with Boxing Social, Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn even went as far as saying the team have been “guaranteed” the fight will happen.
“We’re in the process. We’ve been talking to Saudi this week, and will continue to do that.
We need them to move at some sort of pace, but we’ve been there before. Don’t forget we’re the only ones that have done fights in Saudi in the heavyweight division, or of any championship status.
We’ve been guaranteed and assured that this fight [Joshua vs Wilder] is happening.
We still need to finalise paperwork, and that needs to happen soon as it will start to affect our plans for August 12th.”
‘AJ’ still looks set to fight over the summer, potentially against old rival Dillian Whyte, with Hearn admitting that it was a ‘risk’ but was what the team wanted.
Joshua is no stranger to boxing in Saudi Arabia, with the country playing host to his successful rematch against Andy Ruiz Jr back in 2019, as well as his defeat to Oleksandr Usyk last summer.
It seems that Skills Challenge Entertainment are determined to host AJ-Wilder, even if they can’t secure the undisputed fight between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk on the same night as they had originally planed.