Anthony Joshua Betting: Can AJ Rule the Heavyweight Division Again?
Back in the summer of 2023, boxing fans with an interest in Anthony Joshua betting had one question on their minds: Would their hero ever be the same again? Joshua was the two-time unified heavyweight boxing champion, and one of the most dominant figures in the sport, but it all came crashing down when the pride of Watford, England lost back-to-back matches with Oleksandr Usyk in 2021 and 2022. Something big would have to happen if Joshua were ever going to regain his former glory.
How about a world-class showing against one of the other titans in the heavyweight division? The last time we checked in on Joshua here at Bodog Sportsbook, he was about to face Robert Helenius, a late fill-in for Dillian Whyte. As expected, Joshua (–1800) had little trouble with Helenius, knocking him out in the seventh round with a single right hook.
That’s not going to cut it. Joshua may have cashed in for his boxing betting supporters, but this was yet another tentative performance from Joshua – and it was against one of the lesser names in the sport. When was Joshua finally going to get in the ring with Tyson Fury? How about Deontay Wilder – or even a trilogy fight with Usyk?
Those matchups have yet to materialize. Joshua followed up his victory over Helenius with a much stronger fifth-round KO of Otto Wallin, making good in his first fight under new trainer Ben Davidson. The victory was supposed to set up a bout with Wilder, but that was scuttled when Wilder dropped a clear unanimous decision to Joseph Parker.
Then Joshua took a fight with former UFC Heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou. These crossover bouts may be all the rage in combat sports, but Ngannou – having nearly scored the unlikely upset over Fury in October 2023 – was no match for Joshua the following March, losing via second-round KO.
Where does that leave Joshua as he continues down the road to redemption? He certainly seems more focussed under Davidson’s tutelage, but until Joshua strings together some victories against tougher competition, he still has a lot to prove before we can once again call him the best in the world. With that in mind, let’s revisit those potential lucrative fights against Fury, Wilder and Usyk, and see where things stand as Joshua tries to reclaim his place at the top of the heavyweight mountain.
Tyson Fury
The WBC champion is still the No. 1 star in this division, even if he did wobble considerably versus Ngannou. Available as a –1400 favourite on the boxing odds board leading into this matchup, Fury tasted the canvas in the third round, then had to dig deep to score a split decision victory over Ngannou, who was fighting in the squared circle for the very first time.
While Fury represents the biggest possible money matchup for Joshua, for whatever reason, Joshua’s camp has been reticent to sign a deal. But things may be about to change. Joshua’s promoter, Eddie Hearn, has teamed with Saudi Arabian interests to propose a Fury-Joshua bout. First, Fury has to beat Usyk on May 18, then he has to beat Usyk again in their pre-arranged rematch.
Easier said than done. As we go to press, Fury is a slight –115 favourite over Usyk (–105) on Bodog’s boxing betting lines. It’s a toss-up on paper, and while Fury’s odds would presumably improve if he wins the first fight, winning back-to-back over someone as talented as Usyk is a tall ask.
Deontay Wilder
Is it already too late? The “Bronze Bomber” was all lined up for that marquee fight with Joshua, but not only did Wilder lose to Parker, he was also completely outclassed by the former WBO champion. It was bad enough to set tongues wagging about Wilder’s imminent retirement.
Instead, Wilder will try to rebuild his cred, starting with a bout against Zhang Zhilei, the former WBO interim champion. Zhang (age 41) is two years older than Wilder, and the No. 4-ranked heavyweight in the world according to Ring Magazine, five spots ahead of Wilder – and also coming off a loss to Parker, dropping a majority decision in Saudi Arabia on March 8.
This Wilder-Zhang bout is scheduled for June 1, also in Saudi Arabia (at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, to be precise) but will it even happen? It was meant to be on the undercard for Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol, but that light heavyweight matchup was postponed after Beterbiev suffered a ruptured meniscus.
Not a problem. Wilder still has enough star power to carry this card. He and Zhang have reportedly been elevated to the main event. Bodog Sportsbook will have more on this fight as we get closer to June 1. Should Wilder prevail, the reported plan is to get him back in the ring on August 3 against Jared Anderson.
Oleksandr Usyk
What does a champion have to do to get some respect? Usyk has done it all between the ropes. He won heavyweight gold at the 2012 London Olympics, then matched Evander Holyfield by unifying the cruiserweight titles before taking down Joshua for the heavyweight strap.
To be fair to Joshua, he did perform much better in their rematch. Instead of a unanimous decision, Usyk had to settle for a split decision – although even that was controversial, with most boxing insiders saying Usyk was the obvious winner. The CompuBox stats agree; Usyk set a new record by landing 170 punches, and his 39 punches landed during the 10th round were the most Joshua had ever absorbed.
Usyk didn’t need 10 rounds for his next title defence. The Ukrainian native put away Daniel Dubois via ninth-round stoppage last August in his most recent fight, then signed on the dotted line the following month for what should be an epic bout with Fury – with a rematch included as part of the package.
We know Joshua and Fury plan to do battle if Fury can sweep those two fights. But what about Joshua-Usyk III? There’s some talk that the trilogy fight could take place this autumn, and at one point, Bodog had provisional odds of –180 attached to Usyk, with Joshua checking in at +140. We’ll soon see what the boxing lines look like after Usyk touches gloves with Fury on May 18.
Who Will Anthony Joshua Fight Next?
That will depend on what happens June 1. Instead of waiting for a winner between Fury and Usyk, Joshua says he’ll take on whichever fighter “looks the best” in the Wilder-Zhang bout, or in the scheduled fight between Dubois and Filip Hrgovic that same day.
The IBF might have some say in this, as Dubois will become their mandatory challenger should he put away Hrgovic. But at least we do know the location of Joshua’s next fight: Wembley Stadium in London. And the prospective date for this bout would be September 20 or 21. According to Joshua, all of this is at the behest of Turki Al-Sheikh, the Saudi chairman of the General Entertainment Authority, who helms his nation’s efforts to rule the sporting world.
In theory, Al-Sheikh could waive the rematch clause in the Fury-Usyk matchup and fast-track a meeting between Joshua and the winner. Al-Sheikh has already professed how much he wants to see this Fury-Joshua fight happen. As the most influential person in boxing right now, if Al-Sheikh can’t make it happen, nobody can.
Does Anthony Joshua Still Have What it Takes?
Eddie Hearn seems to think so. After Joshua’s dominating win over Ngannou, the Matchroom Sport promoter claimed that Joshua is the most “in-form” heavyweight in the world right now. Fury disagrees, of course; after watching the Joshua-Ngannou bout and giving the winner his props, Fury reminded everyone that Usyk beat Joshua twice, and that May 18 will decide who the No. 1 and No. 2 heavyweights really are.
In the meantime, at least Joshua has managed to string together four victories, including his last three with Davidson in his corner. It’s a far cry from 2018, when Joshua was still undefeated at 22-0 heading into what should have been an easy title defence against Andy Ruiz Jr. That disappointing seventh-round TKO put the boxing world on its ear.
As you can see, the questions haven’t really stopped. Even if Joshua won back his heavyweight titles in his 2019 rematch with Ruiz, those two losses to Usyk stand out on Joshua’s resume like two sore thumbs. At least we might be about to get some answers. Keep it locked in with Bodog Sportsbook for the latest boxing odds as we prepare for what could be the biggest heavyweight fight of all time.
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