By Boxing Scene Staffing
September 12, 2022
Source: Boxing Scene
Photo Source: Boxing Scene
Dmitriy Salita, trainer for heavyweight contender Otto Wallin, feels strongly that Anthony Joshua should fight his man next.
There are ongoing negotiations for a fight between Joshua and WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury.
Joshua is coming off back to back decision losses to WBO, IBF, IBO, WBA unified champion Oleksandr Usyk. Salita believes Fury is such an overwhelming favorite because nobody believes Joshua could realistically beat him.
"It's an interesting fight between Joshua and Fury. Anthony Joshua got better in the second fight against Usyk, but he's still coming off a loss. You know who the favorite is in that fight between Joshua and Fury and who isn't. I think if that fight happens in December it's not as big as it could be, and I really don't believe it can happen in December, because that's a huge fight and it deserves a bigger build up," Salita told Midnight.
For Fury-Joshua to be as big as it could be, Joshua needs to put together some significant wins and improvements. The public wants big fights where some think this guy is going to win, or that guy is going to win. At this point, even though it was a good performance against Usyk, I don't think there's anyone who thinks Joshua has any chance to beat Tyson Fury."
Salita says a fight between Joshua and Wallin make perfect sense for everyone involved. Wallin's sole defeat was a decision loss to Fury in 2019. During that fight, Wallin inflicted two severe cuts on the right eye of Fury - and there were moments where it appeared the contest would get stopped by the ringside physician - which in turn would have made Wallin a TKO winner. "I believe Otto Wallin versus Joshua makes a lot of sense. From what Eddie (Hearn, Joshua’s promoter) and Joshua have said, Joshua wants to be considered an elite, A+ heavyweight, and Otto is an A+ heavyweight. If Joshua comes back and fights a John Doe with no credentials, without a decent record, and no real name, then he goes back down to a very average level. In my opinion, just fighting an opponent with gloves on, with a professional record, without any real accomplishment - I don't know if it does anything for him, it may decrease his value, depending on who the opponent is," Salita said.
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