Heavyweight title hopeful Joe Joyce is aiming to get back to winning ways when he returns to the ring this evening, but his upcoming opponent has got other plans.
Joyce took some criticism when it was announced that he would be returning to face Kash Ali (21-2), whose lone performance in over two years was a defeat to Bohdan Myronets (6-1) in a six-rounder in Edinburgh and is best remembered for biting David Price in 2019.
However, Joyce has suffered a significant drop in the world rankings after a torrid 2023 that saw him lose his WBO interim title and endure successive knockout defeats to Zhilei Zhang, losing his undefeated record in the process.
Many fans expect Joyce to earn a comfortable win tonight, although, speaking to Queensbury Promotions, Ali told of his intentions to put the final nail in the coffin of the 38-year-old.
“That is exactly what I plan and intend to do [end Joyce’s career]. People are writing me off but I am not concerned about that. The pressure is on him, he is fighting me, I am the underdog or that is what most people think anyway, if he loses to me it’s over.
“He has had his fair share of good wins, he has had his big paydays, he can put his feet up and relax. It’s the end for him and the start of my career really, even though I have been pro for a long time, this is the start for me.”
Joyce-Ali takes place on Saturday night in Birmingham, on the undercard of Nathan Heaney’s British middleweight title defence against Brad Pauls, and can be watched live on TNT Sports.