In the wake of his unanimous decision victory over Joseph Parker this past weekend, IBF/WBA/WBO heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua is the talk of the boxing world, no matter how split the opinions seem to be.
Inside of the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Wales, Joshua (21-0, 20 KO’s) was taken the distance for the first time in his career by Parker (24-1, 18 KO’s), winning comfortably on scorecards 119-109 and 118-110 twice. The match was aired on SHOWTIME and other networks, and seen all over, as Joshua’s popularity continues to mount.
But in the fight itself, we saw Joshua be a bit limited at times. True that Parker is to blame for much of that, as his boxing acumen, movement, and speed were all on display. But you have to wonder what would be in store if Joshua were to ever clash with WBC champion Deontay Wilder, who has been pushing for the match to seemingly no avail from Joshua’s side. Another future mega-fight is coming former lineal heavyweight champion Tyson Fury, yet the ‘Gypsy King’ is still eyeing his own comeback.
So if Joshua doesn’t press forward with a unification, what is next at this stage of his career? At 28 years of age and having been professional for less than five years, there is still room for growth. Joshua’s physical prime may be upon us, but there is still some experience he can pick up.
Two names that stand out who very well could be on Joshua’s radar are Alexander Povetkin and Jarrell Miller. Each opponent is dangerous in their own right, and the two men are on completely different type of upswings.
Former WBA champion Alexander Povetkin continues to win, and last saw action inside of the ring on the Joshua-Parker undercard, as he stopped longtime contender David Price in a back-and-forth slugfest, in the fifth round. Povetkin is 38 years old now but has a wealth of experience and enough power and skills to get Joshua’s respect. It’s a natural sell in the UK, so this might be the move Eddie Hearn makes.
But there has been another colorful character in the mix, as Brooklyn’s own undefeated Jarrell “Big Baby” Miller has been rumored for a possible August showdown in New York. Those rumors circulated months back and Miller has again taken to his Instagram to sound off about AJ’s performance and a possible fight between them.
As we reported previously, Miller said.
“So you know this whole AJ fight?” Miller said in a video that has over 22,000 views. “Joseph Parker, I thought you won the fight brother. I thought you did your thing. I had it 8 rounds 4. But I did predict if it went to decision, they wasn’t going to give that you man.”
Miler than got on to the important matter, questioning if Eddie Hearn really wants to see an undefeated showdown in New York between the two fighters.
“Let’s see if you are going to bring him to New York so I can bust that behind,” said Miller. “Summertime. Let’s see if he makes it happen. Anthony ‘G-String Joshua’ vs. ‘Big Baby’ in Brooklyn.”
It seems that Miller would be a more interesting opponent, yet Povetkin is possibly just as dangerous. Gut feeling is Hearn will learn towards the veteran in this case, that being Povetkin.
