Anthony Joshua to defend IBF title against Eric Molina
Anthony Joshua will defend his IBF World Heavyweight title against Eric Molina at the Manchester Arena on December 10th, it has been announced today.
This will be Joshua’s second title defence after he defeated Charles Martin inside two rounds back in April to secure the title, and then stopping Dominic Breazeale inside seven rounds at the O2 in June to retain the title in his first defence to extend his career unbeaten streak to 17 fights.
Molina is an established fighter in his own right and has previously fought in a title fight before, but was defeated by Deontay Wilder in June 2015 for the WBC crown.
Joshua is keen on putting on a show for the fans in attendance in December as he builds towards a potential fight with Wladimir Klitschko.
“I am pleased that everything is now set for December 10 and I can concentrate on getting the business done in the ring,” said Joshua.
“There has been plenty of talk about who I may face but all I’m doing is concentrating on finishing Molina in style and putting on a great show.
“Every fight is dangerous in this division and this is no exception. I saw Molina have a great fight with Wilder and he is now coming off a strong KO win against Adamek in Poland.
“I’m expecting this to be the toughest fight of my career so far and I will be ready for an all-out war.”
34-year-old Molina, who defeated Tomasz Adamek in April for the IBF Inter-Continental belt, is full of confidence ahead of his fight with Joshua and believes he can pull off an upset.
“There is no heavyweight in the world that has bounced back like I have,” said Molina. “That’s the man that Joshua faces on December 10 and that man is a very dangerous one.
“He’ll fight the toughest Molina that anybody has ever seen, just like Adamek fought the toughest Molina.
“I’m confident. These type of fights don’t shake me up, I’m a very strong mental fighter. I know exactly what I’ve got to do to prepare myself in the amount of time. I know exactly what I’ve got to do, mentally, physically, to go there and perform.
“When you walk out into the atmosphere, half the battle is the mental battle, and if you can stay in the moment mentally you have a shot in any fight.”
On the undercard, Dillian Whyte defends his British Heavyweight title against his bitter London rival Dereck Chisora in an official eliminator for the WBC title – Whyte’s second defence of this belt after defeating fellow Brixton man Ian Lewison in Glasgow last month.