One heavyweight who has fought both Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder has compared the power of the two heavy hitters.
Joshua and Wilder have been linked to a fight for years, at one stage it looked like the pair would meet for the undisputed championship when they controlled all the belts in the division. Since then both men have lost their titles but some observers still believe their matchup is the biggest fight to be made in the heavyweight division.
On December 23 ‘AJ’ and Wilder will top the bill of a stacked card in Saudi Arabia – just not against each other. Joshua will step in against Swedish southpaw, Otto Wallin, whilst ‘The Bronze Bomber’ will go up against another former world champion, Joseph Parker.
Before both men had started their first world title reigns they each faced American, Jason Gavern. Gavern asked his corner to stop the fight against Wilder after the fourth round having suffered numerous knockdowns beforehand. Against Joshua he suffered a similar fate, being stopped in the third round of their clash.
Speaking to ATG Radio about the power of both men, Gavern surprisingly picked the Brit as the man with the heavier punch.
“I would say Joshua [hits harder]. I think for how big he is, I think a big guy like him should not move as well as he does. He moves so fast, especially on the inside. He through a hook on the inside with me and I didn’t know where it was coming from, it was crazy how fast he was punching. So yes, I think Joshua hit’s harder for sure.”
If both the former champions get through their respective fights at the end of the year, it’s widely expected the two will finally meet in the ring in 2024.