We haven’t even had Tyson Fury Vs. Oleksandr Usyk yet. Or Joe Joyce Vs. Zhilei Zhang. But Frank Warren, writing in his regular column, says the plan is for Fury and Joyce to rumble in an all-British spectacular this summer at Wembley. Assuming of course, both giants win their upcoming fights. We are still waiting for the Fury-Usyk unification clash to be officially confirmed, date, venue, the lot. While WBO interim heavyweight champ Joyce will face “Big Bang” Zhang in London on April 15.
Warren says this is a legit test for “The Juggernaut,” and we fans fully agree with him. This fight WILL be savage, it will be brutal. It will be thoroughly entertaining for as long as it lasts. And with both guys having a veritable rock for a head, Joyce-Zhang could go into the trenches of the later rounds.
Warren, who says he has “yet to meet anyone” who believes Zhang actually lost his last fight, this the August 2022 battle the Chinese southpaw had with Filip Hrgovic, and the promoter says we could be in for “something special” at The Copper Box Arena on April 15.
“I was delighted last week to be able to officially signpost a proper banger of a heavyweight fight for April 15 when Big Joe Joyce goes up against Big Bang Zhang, otherwise known as Zhilei Zhang,” Warren wrote. “I’ve got a good feeling about this one and I think we could be in for something special. It is a bit of a lottery ticket for the Chinese giant, who was edged out in an IBF final eliminator against Filip Hrgovic last year. I have yet to meet someone who actually thinks Hrgovic won the fight, so Zhang is definitely worthy of another bash.
“Our big hope, of course, is that The Juggernaut remains on a collision course with Tyson Fury and a big summer date at Wembley. That is the plan if Tyson takes all three titles from Oleksandr Usyk and Joe does the business on April 15.”
Sounds like a plan, as they say. Of course, there’s no guarantee that Fury beats Usyk any more than it’s a foregone conclusion that Joyce beats Zhang. This is heavyweight boxing, of course. But the two best in the world (Fury and Usyk), getting it on and then fighting the winner of an anticipated war between two big, hungry and tougher than tough contenders is what our sport needs.
If Warren’s dream scenario unfolds, it will be the fans that come out on top. Each of these three match-ups is worth paying for. There are too many PPV offerings these days, yet these three fights are ones we fans would/will be happy to shell out for.
