Anthony Joshua Has Two Main Credible Opponents, According to Lennox Lewis

The only remaining heavyweight champion in the world, Lennox Lewis, and Anthony Joshua have never had a particularly cordial relationship. According to Lewis, “AJ” only has two opponents that are worthy of fighting after “gimme” contests.

When Joshua last faced Otto Wallin on the Day of Reckoning card in Saudi Arabia, Lewis was spectating from a TV studio. A clear-cut stoppage victory that came after Wallin stayed on his stool after the fifth round was widely regarded as his strongest performance in a long time. It came after two other wins in 2023 against Jermaine Franklin and Robert Helenius.

Speaking to The Ring, Magazine Lewis stated that Joshua ought to reserve his big-fight opportunities for after he has fully recovered from his consecutive defeats to the legendary Oleksandr Usyk.

“I look at Joshua and I’m like, ‘OK, he’s had a couple gimme fights, he doesn’t need any more gimme fights.’ He wants to test his skill, give him something. You cannot give scraps to a dog. This guy wants to go out there and prove himself. Allow him to (do it), don’t baby him.”

Following that, Lewis asserted that Joshua should only compete against Zhilei Zhang and Tyson Fury. The Britishman has already lost both of his encounters with Oleksandr Usyk.

“The issue today is that he will be facing up-and-coming fighters, but Fury and Zhang will now be his primary rivals for greater legitimacy. I didn’t want to be boxing the people who were coming up while I was there. I was looking for someone with whom I could truly connect and who could help me advance. As of right now, all Joshua is doing is waiting for an opportunity. They’re telling me he needs to stay occupied, but I think this kid should have been competing for titles a long time ago.

Though boxing fans will be expecting for a more difficult test against the winner of Fury and Usyk’s undisputed fight in February, the truth is that his next fight is against a 1 and 0 novice in Francis Ngannou.