Boxing heavyweights Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury alongside UFC superstar Conor McGregor could all fight across a two-week period in July of this year, according to The Express, much to the delight of fighting fans across the globe.
The trilogy fight between Deontay Wilder and Fury is currently pencilled in for July 18, McGregor’s reported bout with Justin Gaethje could be staged on July 11, and although Joshua’s fight with Kubrat Pulev is currently pencilled in for June 20, it could be moved back to July 25 due to the coronavirus, making for a potentially very exciting month for fighting fans across the world.
Joshua’s much anticipated return has raised a few eyebrows across the boxing community, with many believing he would fight another superstar of the division, maybe a Fury or Wilder, however, with the American triggering the rematch clause, with what would make the Wilder vs Fury series a trilogy, this left Joshua with no choice other than to look further down into the division for less of a challenge.
Having said that, the first fight between Joshua and then-ranked 14th in IBF rankings Andy Ruiz Jr sent shockwaves through the division, with Ruiz ending the fight within seven rounds and capturing all four of AJ's belts, therefore leaving many asking the question of whether Joshua really was one of the best in the division.
Joshua redeemed himself in the second fight with a boxing masterclass, however, still can’t seem to land himself the fight he wants and really needs to properly kick-start his career over again.
Pulev will go into the bout with a record of 15 wins (12 via knockout) and no losses, so it will be another tough task for AJ to overcome, but with the fight scheduled to be in London, and with the home fans advantage, you must back AJ to get the win which will hopefully prove himself again to the other big boys in the division.
The trilogy fight between Wilder and Fury is currently set to be on July 18. This is a chance at redemption for the Bronze Bomber as he lost their last fight in dramatic fashion, getting TKO’d in the seventh round by the Gypsy King.
A lot of boxing fans are questioning the decision to let Fury fight Wilder again, and you have to ask the same question after the draw in the first fight and Fury getting the win in the second fight, why risk it again?
Surely, it’s time to move on for Fury, probably to Joshua for the fight that every heavyweight boxing fan wants to see.
Despite Fury being the clear favourite after the first two fights, with Wilder’s pure power, you can never count the Bronze Bomber out, as one left hand can lay any man out on the canvas without a chance of getting up.
Take the Wilder vs Ortiz fight for example. Ortiz dominated, really putting on a show, however, one punch from Wilder laid the Cuban out on the canvas and that was it, all over.
Ex-featherweight and welterweight champion of the world McGregor, meanwhile, is reportedly set to fight Gaethje in early to mid-July, and this would a massive fight for both fighters.
A win for McGregor would bring back the belief among UFC and McGregor fans that he may be ready for a title shot again, and a win for Gaethje would mean he would get a chance at the title and facing the winner of Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson.
Whenever McGregor fights, a certain amount of pressure always lays on his shoulders as there’s always one thing that is guaranteed... trash talking, and a lot of it. McGregor is the king of UFC when it comes to trash talking, whether it's calling his opponent a weasel or a rat, or whether it’s stealing his belt and posing with it whilst his opponent tries to fight off the owner of the UFC to get it back (Jose Aldo vs McGregor back in December 2015).
Gaethje would go into the fight in July with a record of 21 wins and two losses, but also goes into the fight with momentum following a win over ‘The Cowboy’ Cerrone following a first-round knockout.
McGregor also defeated Cerrone in his most recent fight, making for a very good fight indeed.
Looking at the month of July on balance from a fighting fans perspective, it looks to be a very good and exciting one with three superstars of the fighting world all competing at the peak of their respective sports.
Heavyweight boxing is always exciting regardless of who is fighting, and with it being two of the best in the business, it is going to make for some very exciting, on the edge of your seat moments.
Also, McGregor never fails to put a show on, so it is all set up to be a very good month of UFC and boxing action.