Exclusive: Joe Joyce can beat anyone on his day, says promoter Sam Jones
- Joe Hewlett
- 13 September 2021
"Joe can beat anyone on his night but Anthony Joshua is an amazing fighter, an amazing heavyweight and it’s going to be a hard fight."
Joe Joyce is waiting in the wings to challenge the winner of Anthony Joshua and Oleksandr Usyk for three of the four heavyweight world title belts.
The "Juggernaut" has been installed as the WBO mandatory challenger and most recently dispatched Carlos Takam inside six rounds.
Joyce - a 2016 silver-medallist at the 2016 Olympics - is undefeated from 13 pro fights and his victories include a dominant performance over Daniel Dubois.
Joshua defends his WBA, IBF, and WBO straps against Usyk on September 25 at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
It is the second defence of Joshua's second reign as unified champion and is his biggest test since overcoming Andy Ruiz Jr. in 2019.
The other world title will see Tyson Fury defend his WBC crown against Deontay Wilder on October 9 in Las Vegas.
However, rather than waiting to see how both fights turn out, promoter Sam Jones has revealed Joyce will make his return to the ring very soon.
"He's going to be fighting very soon, sooner than you think. Joshua's going to fight Usyk and then we will wait for what happens.
"Joe Joyce is going to be installed as the WBO mandatory challenger and hopefully, that'll happen next year," Jones exclusively told Planet Sport.
"I think Joshua is going to be too big and too strong for him," Jones said when asked about predicting the outcome of Joshua-Usyk.
"The longer the fight goes, it's more in Usyk's favour but I think Joshua will land a shot and it'll be the end of the fight. It's not a foregone conclusion that Joshua wins.
"You've got Deontay Wilder arguably the biggest puncher in heavyweight history against Fury so you don't know where the belts are going to be in a few months," Jones continued.
"By being Joe Joyce," Jones replied when quizzed about how Joyce beats Joshua.
"Back in the Daniel Dubois fight he was more cautious but it was educated pressure. Joe can beat anyone on his night but Anthony Joshua is an amazing fighter, an amazing heavyweight and it's going to be a hard fight but to win the heavyweight title it should be a hard fight."
Lara vs Warrington ends in anti-climax
Josh Warrington's bid for redemption ended with an agonising technical draw following a clash of heads in round two.
In front of an electric atmosphere at Headingley Stadium, the fight got halted with Lara sustaining a horrific cut above the left eye.
There have been calls for a rematch since, despite it potentially taking Lara up to six months to recover from the cut. Warrington was hoping to avenge his February defeat, which ended in a shock ninth-round stoppage.
Jones believes Warrington would have won the fight if it had been able to continue.
"A big f***ing massive anti-climax. Listen, it happens, it's boxing isn't it so it's part of Josh Warrington's story and hopefully, they can get it on and soon.
"I think Josh was looking good in there tonight but you panic every time he's throwing the shots though it's like a gunshot going off. Josh was looking good, he looked a lot tighter in this fight and I expected him to win so hopefully they can get it on again.
"It'll have to happen because Josh can't really go forward in his career without putting that right because of the way it happened and the way he lost the first time. When they get it on again I think Josh will win. Lara's a tough man though," Jones added.
