Who next? Candidates for Anthony Joshua’s future fights
- Michael Oliver
- @MichaelOIiver
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As Anthony Joshua continues to dominate the heavyweight division after knocking off the legendary Wladimir Klitschko at Wembley this weekend, we ask the question: Can anyone stop him?
We’ve taken a look at the logical next challengers for Joshua in the heavyweight division.
Luis Ortiz
The Cuban fighter is the number one contender for the WBA title that Joshua won on Saturday night.
The WBA have announced that the winner will face Ortiz in a mandatory defence, meaning that Joshua’s likely next fight will be against the undefeated southpaw.
Kubrat Pulev
The IBF also announced that the winner would have to fight their mandatory challenger, Kubrat Pulev, for the world title next up.
The likelihood is that Joshua would have to drop either the IBF or WBA belt, given the conflicting mandatory challenges on the horizon, but the 27-year-old wants to be the undisputed world champion meaning he’ll likely come across Pulev at some point.
Joseph Parker
Parker beat Andy Ruiz last year to secure the vacant WBO title and was set to fight Tyson Fury’s younger brother, Hughie before he had to pull out of the fight.
In Joshua’s quest to hold all the major belts, he will step toe-to-toe with the Kiwi in the near future.
Deontay Wilder
Wilder has held the WBC belt for over two years now and is on a run of five straight successful title defences.
The American is gearing up for a unification fight with Joshua in the near future as two titans of the sport.
Tyson Fury
It remains to be seen if Tyson Fury can get his career back on track after a long period out of the sport, but if he can get into shape, he remains one of the biggest names in the division.
As the man who knocked off Wladimir Klitschko, Fury will be coming for his titles once again and a fight with Joshua down the line could be one of the biggest in British boxing history.
Joshua sent a clear message to Fury after beating Klitschko by calling him out. Only time will tell when and where the pair will meet.
David Haye
David Haye has suffered a setback in his final run as a boxer, injuring his achilles in his defeat to Tony Bellew earlier this year.
Haye has long thought he can take out Joshua in what could again be a massive fight for British boxing.
Tony Bellew
Bellew is still undecided about making the step up to heavyweight full-time but the former world cruiserweight champion has spoken about a potential fight with Joshua and it’s one we’d all love to see.
Andy Ruiz
The Mexican suffered his only professional loss to Joseph Parker for the then vacant WBO title but is still ranked highly by the other organisations and could be in line for another title shot soon.
Bermane Stiverne
Stiverne won his first world title back in 2014 only to lose his WBC belt to Wilder in his one and only title defence.
Ranked as the number one contender for Wilder’s WBC belt, Stiverne is still a big name in the heavyweight scene and could mount a challenge on Joshua’s titles.
Carlos Takam
Takam lost the IBF title eliminator to Joseph Parker last year but, like Ruiz, is still ranked highly amongst his peers to bounce back and make a title run.
Alexander Ustinov
Ustinov suffered his only professional defeat to Kubrat Pulev almost five years ago now and has bounced back well.
Ranked third in line for the WBA title, expect him to make a push for a world title fight in the near future.