Deontay Wilder is working on a deal that will see the American face Anthony Joshua in both Saudi Arabia and Africa. A head-to-head between the former heavyweight champions has long been anticipated but it would now appear that a blockbuster double deal is set to be agreed.
It had been hoped that the pair would form part of a sensational double headline bill with Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk in Saudia Arabia this December but with the latter two unable to agree on a package that plan has now been pushed back into the new year.
Middle East negotiators still want Wilder and Joshua to appear on the same bill, but even if that ambition is not realised, the former has made clear his intentions to face the 33-year-old Brit.
Speaking to ES News, Wilder said: “Everybody knows about the Joshua situation. That is serious. That’s real. That is one that’s up next. We’re looking forward to that, I’ll be getting in camp real soon. I’ll be promoting it within the next few months or so. Finally get that showdown on.
“I think it’s gonna be a great, great fight between me and him. I’m actually working on a two-fight deal with me and Joshua, one up in Saudi Arabia and the other one up in the Motherland, Africa.”
Joshua, who beat Robert Helenius with a seventh-round knockout on August 13, has not confirmed that he is planning to face Wilder twice but acknowledged that negotiations were well on course for the Saudi Arabia leg.
Joshua told Sky Sports News: “Things are positive. In reality, we’re trying to schedule a fight for December. That’s the time scale we’re looking forward to really. In reality, I’m going to focus on the Wilder fight for now.”
But when it was put to him that he may fit another fight in before eventually facing Wilder, Joshua dismissed the suggestion, adding: “The timeframe doesn’t really give an opportunity for that.”
Joshua’s victory against Helenius was his first knockout win in over two years. But Wilder represents a completely different proposition and he accepted that he will have to be at his best and work his hardest to beat the American.
Joshua said: “Whoever’s good enough to bring that side out of me and take me to the trenches, let’s go. That’s what I’m looking for. I’m looking for an opponent that’s good enough to take me to the trenches.
“At the end of the day, it’s a fight and if it goes down that route, if someone’s good enough to bring that out of you, you’ve got to know that you’re man enough to stand up and fight for your territory.”