Sports
By Kal Sajad and Coral Barry BBC Sport
IN another universe Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder might be sitting with their respective teams going over a good night’s work over breakfast in Saudi Arabia.
They might be congratulating themselves on stepping up at five weeks’ notice to successfully headline boxing’s “greatest ever card” and secure their long-awaited mega-fight.
Joshua and Wilder were meant to face off in the ring moments after the Briton’s victory against Otto Wallin and announce a fight date in March. That was the plan.
But in boxing, even with the stacks of cash and the sport’s most bitter rivals playing nice, nothing is certain.
“I’m sure from a fan perspective, they’ll be more annoyed. For me, I always understand how this game is,” Joshua said. “You never know. This is elite level boxing.”
Joseph Parker made sure those best-laid plans were torn up, with a composed and punch-perfect performance. It was in truth an easy win for Parker, or at least he made it look so against 38-year-old Wilder.
In a card full of mismatches, Wilder v Parker represented the one true banana skin. And it proved to be, resulting in boxing’s revolutionary night ending on a somewhat sour note.
But after the biggest promoters and fighters in the world came together for the first time in decades, there is hope a new age of co-operation could emerge.
‘Merry Christmas to us’ – Parker
As a boxing event, this was arguably one of the biggest or most talent-laden cards in history. Joshua described it as “best fight card in history”.
The card had a clear vision: make the stars look good in a knockout moment. Filip Hrgovic’s opponent Mark de Mori taught himself to box from YouTube and his most recent fight was a win against a fighter who once competed at super-featherweight.
Hrgovic took less than two minutes to stop De Mori. Briton Ellis Zorro was completely untested at world level. Former IBF cruiserweight champion Jai Opetaia produced an almost sickening knockout of him in less than three minutes.
Six of the eight fights on the card involved heavyweights – the Saudi organisers made no secret of their wish to see knockouts and the match-making was a result of that desire.
But it leaves you wondering why, with a card full of seemingly forgone conclusions, did they pick Parker? He was a former world champion, had three wins under his belt in 2023 and had the style and confidence to outsmart Wilder.
Parker produced a controlled, mature performance in his 38th pro fight. “He’s number three in the world. He could be number one if he gets the chance,” his coach Andy Lee said in the post-fight news conference.
Saturday night was supposed to be the final hurdle for Joshua v Wilder. After years of failed negotiations and repeated blame games, the fight was finally within reach.
But just as soon as it appeared, it was gone again in the space of 12 rounds and 36 minutes.
Parker, a man who has always let his fighting do the talking, had little to say on his greatest triumph to date, except: “Merry Christmas to us.”
What next for boxing and Joshua?
There is no doubt a billing of this magnitude, featuring household names Joshua and Wilder, would have sold out a stadium in the UK or Las Vegas’ biggest arenas within seconds.
Fight-week events would be open to the public, with fans scrambling for photos and autographs.
Organisers in Saudi Arabia hoped 6,000 to 10,000 people would turn up, but instead there swathes of empty seats around the arena when Wilder, one of the biggest draws in the sport, emerged.
It could have been the time – it was 1am locally when Wilder v Parker started – but the lack of atmosphere has been apparent throughout fight week.
A taxi driver asked a reporter if he was here for “the wrestling” on the way to the venue.
On the broadcast, chattering could be heard at ringside, walk-outs fell noticeably flat and there was none of the customary crescendo from a fervent crowd who were witnessing a knockout.
UFC star Conor McGregor and footballer Cristiano Ronaldo were at ringside, as were boxing stars Devin Haney and Chris Eubank Jr, but, this close to Christmas, there was nowhere near the conveyor belt of celebrities that arrived for Tyson Fury v Francis Ngannou in October.
But at ringside, sat right beside McGregor and Ronaldo, were Matchroom boss Eddie Hearn and Queensberry Promotions counterpart Frank Warren.
Boxing fans would be looking for Jeremy Beadle’s hidden camera if you told them a few months ago that they would be in the same room, let alone spending an evening in each other’s company and sitting side-by-side on fight night.
The two had never met before the launch news conference in November.
Even the backroom staff of Matchroom and Queensberry have been happily working together in fight week, as if they have been doing so for years.
Saudi Arabia’s money made that happen. The new boxing powerbroker in Saudi Arabia, Turki Al-Sheikh, has spearheaded the vision of bringing boxing’s heavyweight stars under one roof.
Al-Sheikh and the Saudi royal family were thanked at every possible juncture through fight week, with the kingdom using boxing as a vehicle to build its reputation on a global stage.
But the cloud of ‘sportswashing’ and the country’s human rights record still hangs over the sporting events they invest in.
Saudi Arabia sports minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Faisal told BBC Sport recently that sportswashing accusations were “very shallow”.
https://emp.bbc.com/emp/SMPj/2.51.0/iframe.htmlSportswashing claims ‘very shallow’ – Saudi minister
But the scrutiny remains and, with boxing’s most powerful figures talking up the prospect of regular huge events in Saudi Arabia, the questions will continue.
As for Joshua, he was the big winner on Saturday night. A third win in nine months capped a successful rebuild mission for the Watford fighter who 16 months ago was having a meltdown in the ring after another loss to Oleksandr Usyk.
With the opportunity to become a three-time world champion now seemingly within his grasp and having produced his first back-to-back stoppage wins since 2017, the world seems to be at Joshua’s feet once again.
Joshua intends to be ringside for Usyk v Fury on 17 February. Hearn said all parties could work together again once that fight is over to make sure the biggest bouts are made, including Fury v Joshua.
Only time will tell if 23 December is a flash in the pan or the start of a new era in boxing where the best do actually fight the best, and not just in Saudi Arabia.
T.
-December 24, 2023 @ 18:48 GMT|
Tags: Anthony Joshua DEONTAY Wilder
