By Michael Serra-

On April 29th at Wembley Stadium, Anthony Joshua defends his IBF heavyweight championship against former champion Wladimir Klitchsko.

The general consensus is that Joshua despite winning the title, is largely untested, and still has lots more to learn! Question marks loom over the champion.
In recent performances Joshua has at times looked a tad crude for better use of the word and in winning the title last April, had very little to beat in the champion Charles Martin whom contented himself by taking the count and making no attempt whatsoever to get up and continue.

Last time out Joshua looked a lot more mature, better defensively and looked much better but in all fairness, Eric Molina provided very little and soon folded once Joshua landed, yet again it told us nothing and proved little more than a routine defence for the likeable Hertfordshire man!

Klitchsko hasn’t boxed since losing to Tyson Fury back in November 2015! That night he seemed out of sorts, letting the Mancunian spoil and grab his way through a lackluster twelve rounds.
This is a typical match up of the changing of the guard, the old lion versus the young lion.

This is definitely what the American’s would call ‘a pick em’ while Joshua has youth on his side, Klitchsko has experience.

Joshua’s best chance of victory is going to be by the short route, he has what we call the proverbial punchers chance, and if he can land clean enough he may well be with in a chance of stopping the Ukranian.

Remember back in 2003 when Wladimir defended his WBO title against Corrie Sanders! This is I feel Joshua’s best chance of victory, however if Klitchsko get’s into a rhythm and starts to work that left jab of his, then the Englishman could be in for a long and painful evening.

I’m going to stick my chin out here and go for a stoppage in favour of Joshua, I feel ring rust and father time won’t help and I feel Johshua hits as hard if not harder than Sanders! And that was almost 14 years ago! Joshua for me in six rounds!

For ticket details please visit www.matchroomboxing.com

The World Heavyweight unification blockbuster between Anthony Joshua MBE and Wladimir Klitschko has broken box office records with over 80,000 tickets sold for the April 29 super fight at Wembley Stadium Connected by EE, live on Sky Sports Box Office.

The second batch of tickets for the blockbuster fight sold inside one hour when they released at lunchtime on Monday and the total tickets now sold has exceed the record set by Carl Froch’s World Super Middleweight title rematch against George Groves in 2014.

Promoter Eddie Hearn said: “The demand for tickets for Joshua vs Klitschko is phenomenal – this is unquestionably the biggest fight in British boxing history and we would have sold out Wembley twice over.

“We have put a request in to Brent Council, the Mayor’s office and TFL to increase the capacity by a further 5,000 tickets. We are confident of a positive answer and we will release further news shortly. Roll on April 29!”

Joshua MBE will face former World ruler Wladimir Klitschko for his IBF World Heavyweight title and the vacant IBO Championship as well as the WBA Super Championship on April 29, 2017 at Wembley Stadium Connected by EE, live on Sky Sports Box Office.

A limited number of coach and ticket packages remain on sale via See Tickets at http://www.seetickets.com/event/joshua-v-klitschko-ticket-and-coach-package/wembley-stadium/1057044/?src=Seesocial

50,000 tickets were sold in first period of ticket sales for the World Heavyweight unification blockbuster between Anthony Joshua MBE and Wladimir Klitschko on April 29 at Wembley Stadium Connected by EE.

Tickets which were available across Club Wembley, Matchroom Fightpass and on general sale via Wembley and StubHub have now sold out with the second batch of tickets to be released on January 16.

Coach packages have been made available in order to maximise the available capacity at Wembley and remain on sale via See Tickets by calling 0844 871 8808 or at www.seetickets.com with various pick up/drop off locations available.
A second batch of tickets will go on sale at midday on Monday 16th January 2017 exclusively via StubHub fromwww.stubhub.co.uk with tickets in all price brackets available. Tickets are priced £40, £60, £80, £100, £150, £200, £400, £800 and £2,000 VIP plus booking fees.

Joshua MBE will face former World ruler Wladimir Klitschko for his IBF World Heavyweight title and the vacant IBO Championship as well as the WBA Super Championship on April 29, 2017 at Wembley Stadium Connected by EE, live on Sky Sports Box Office.

Anthony Joshua retained the IBF Heavyweight title with a 3rd round stoppage over Eric Molina at a sold out crowd at the Manchester Arena in Mancherster, England.

Joshua floored Molina with a powerful right in the 3rd round. Molina was hurt and ate a huge combination and the fight was stopped at

Joshua will now fight Wladimir Klitschko in Wembley Stadium, and now has a record of 18-0 with 18 knockouts. Molina is now 25-4.

MANCHESTER, England (Dec. 8, 2016) – IBF Heavyweight World Champion Anthony Joshua and American challenger Eric Molina met for their final press conference on Thursday in Manchester, England, as they prepare to square off this Saturday at Manchester Arena live on SHOWTIME® (5:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. PT).

The SHOWTIME BOXING INTERNATIONAL® presentation originates from Galen Center at USC in Los Angeles, site of that evening’s SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING telecast. WBC Heavyweight World Champion Deontay Wilder will join host Brian Custer and analysts Al Bernstein and Paulie Malignaggi as part of the SHOWTIME announce team for Joshua vs. Molina.

“It’s not so much about who I’m fighting, it’s about myself,” Joshua told the British press. “I’m not really worried about what Eric’s camp is doing. God willing I go out there to do my job. I’m just really worried about myself. I’ll make Eric look like a novice.”

Molina said he wants to duplicate the feat of his long-time mentor Oliver McCall, who in 1994 upset Lennox Lewis for the WBC Heavyweight title at Wembley Stadium in London. “I always envision myself having that moment that he had here in England,” Molina said. “He had that big win and it just shows the world that in this heavyweight division anything is possible.”

Added Molina: “If you slip-up one second you’ll be dancing and the world will be talking.”

Undefeated sensation and 2012 Olympic Gold Medalist Joshua (17-0, 17 KOs) will make the second defense of his title against Molina (25-3 19 KOs), a Texas native getting his second shot at a belt in his quest to become the first Mexican-American heavyweight world champion.

An encore presentation of Joshua vs. Molina will air as part of the SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING telecast later that evening, following the main event showdown between WBA Featherweight World Champion Jesus Cuellar and three-division former champ Abner Mares. In the co-feature, Jermall Charlo will defend his IBF Junior Middleweight World Championship against fellow-undefeated challenger Julian Williams.

NEW YORK (Dec. 2, 2016) – WBC Heavyweight World Champion Deontay Wilder will join the SHOWTIME announce team as a guest analyst for the IBF Heavyweight World Championship fight between undefeated champion Anthony Joshua and American challenger Eric Molina on Saturday, Dec. 10, live on SHOWTIME (5:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. PT).

Wilder (37-0, 36 KOs) will join host Brian Custer and analysts Al Bernstein and Paulie Malignaggi for the SHOWTIME BOXING INTERNATIONAL® presentation from Galen Center at USC in Los Angeles, site of that evening’s SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING telecast.

The “Bronze Bomber” just completed rehab for a fractured right hand and torn right bicep (see video above) as he (Wilder) sets his sights to unify the division in 2017. Wilder is acutely familiar with Molina, having defeated the fellow-American in the first defense of his title in June, 2015 on SHOWTIME.

“I know firsthand just how tough Eric Molina is,” Wilder said. “He’s coming to win because it’s a chance for him to win a world title, and he’ll definitely push Joshua. Whoever wins will have to see me eventually because it’s my goal to collect all the belts and become the undisputed heavyweight champion.”

Joshua is making the second defense of his title against Molina, who is getting his second shot at a belt in his quest to become the first Mexican-American heavyweight world champion.

An encore presentation of Joshua vs. Molina will air as part of the SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING telecast later that evening, following the main event showdown between WBA Featherweight World Champion Jesus Cuellar and three-division former champ Abner Mares. In the opening bout, Jermall Carlo will defend his IBF Junior Middleweight World Championship against fellow-undefeated challenger Julian Williams.

17,000 tickets were sold on the opening day of sales for Anthony Joshua’s IBF World Heavyweight title defence against Eric Molina at the Manchester Arena on December 10, live on Sky Sports Box Office in the UK and on SHOWTIME in the US.

Joshua defends his crown for the second time in his third fight in a row against American opposition – with limited tickets remaining on sale priced £40 to £500 from http://www.manchester-arena.com/ and on 0844 847 8000. VIP tickets are £800 and available exclusively from Matchroom Boxing www.matchroomboxing.com.

Joshua’s clash with Molina tops a huge night of action in Manchester as Dillian Whyte faces bitter London rival Dereck Chisora in an official eliminator for the WBC title.

Scott Quigg returns to action after treatment on his broken jaw following his unification blockbuster with Carl Frampton, and the Bury star moves up to Featherweight as he looks to regain his status as a World champion.

Kal Yafai can become Birmingham’s first World champion but the unbeaten 27 year old faces a tough task to rip the WBA Super-Flyweight title against Luis Concepcion, the two-weight World champion that will enter the ring in his 11th World title outing.

Irish amateur sensation Katie Taylor boxes for the second time in the paid ranks after making her pro debut at The SSE Arena, Wembley on November 26, Heavyweight wrecking ball ‘King Kong’ Luis Ortiz fights in Europe for the second time after clashing with Malik Scott in Monte-Carlo on November 12 and Hosea Burton will defend his British Light-Heavyweight title against Frank Buglioni.

Face value tickets for December 10 are also be available from http://www.stubhub.co.uk/matchroom-boxing-tickets/ . StubHub is the official ticket partner and marketplace of Matchroom Boxing and Anthony Joshua.

LONDON (Nov. 4, 2016) – Undefeated IBF Heavyweight World Champion Anthony Joshua (17-0, 17 KOs) and challenger Eric Molina (25-3, 19 KOs) went face-to-face Friday at the kickoff press conference at Dorchester Hotel in London to formally announce their heavyweight world title fight on Saturday, Dec. 10, live on SHOWTIME from Manchester Arena in Manchester. There were 17,000 tickets sold on the first day to purchase tickets.

Joshua, a British sensation and the 2012 Olympic Games heavyweight gold medalist, will be making the second defense of the title he won over Charles Martin last April 4. Joshua knocked out previously unbeaten Dominic Breazeale in the seventh round last June 25 in his initial defense.

Molina will be getting his second opportunity at a world title. Molina has won two straight since challenging WBC title holder Deontay Wilder in 2015, including a 10th-round TKO over former world champion Tomasz Adamek last April 4 in Poland.

Here’s what the heavyweights said:

ANTHONY JOSHUA:
“I don’t think that I’ll be rusty. I’m not going to say camp is smooth or great because it’s always tough and exhausting for the body. I needed a break because I live in the gym, it’s what I’ve been doing since I was 18 and I haven’t taken my foot off the gas since. The task is to express myself under the bright lights in the arena and show what we’ve worked on in the dark corners of the gym.

“I started preparing my body for camp and then training for this date. I don’t want to mention Wladimir Klitschko too much because that’s not the relevant opponent – Eric Molina is the man that will stand across the ring from me on December 10. He’s a tough competitor and represents a strong challenge to me. We are competing for my belt and the guys that want to become world champion raise their levels by 50-60 percent.

“There’s nowhere to hide on fight night. There’s no change in my focus for Eric. Wladimir doesn’t enter the equation for me. People will talk about him and I’ll answer the questions, but that’s as far as it goes. He’s not in my mind, Eric is.

“It takes courage to step into the ring. Deontay Wilder is known as a one-punch KO artist and Eric stood up to his power, so it shows that he’s here to push the champion and take my title.

“I don’t get involved in other people’s issues or stories, it’s nothing to do with me. It wasn’t that long ago that no one cared what I was doing, so I don’t really have to prove myself to anyone aside from myself.

“The division has been blown wide open but they’ve been saying that for a while and they will keep saying it until someone dominates the division again. It’s not so much about brand and hype, it’s about guys like Eric that come with true heart and are gladiators and fight for the love of the sport, and leave everything in the ring on fight night.

“There’s a lot at stake and with Sky Sports and SHOWTIME behind us, this is a big stage to show what you have got. I’m serious about what I do and about moving forward. I don’t have a script, I can only speak from the heart; whatever Eric’s destiny is, that’s what will happen on the night. If his destiny is to become heavyweight champion, so be it. But my destiny is to carry on the path I am on and put in a dominant performance on an explosive night of boxing in Manchester.”

ERIC MOLINA:
“I’ve been in these fights before. I have no amateur experience so I’m learning no the job — and I’m getting better every fight. I fought five rounds against Wilder with a busted ankle, so everything you saw from me was done on one ankle. That’s the kind of guy this young man is facing. I fight with everything I’ve got. Even if I’m hurt, I still fight, because I know that one punch at any given moment can win me the fight. Anything can happen in the heavyweight division.

“I knew this fight was coming my way because nobody wants to fight him. Let’s be real. All the other fighters want to go and fight other guys and for the other belts and not face Anthony Joshua. I’m a guy that’s been in with Wilder – no one wants to fight Wilder, but I did, and that’s why I’m in London today and will be in Manchester on Dec. 10 putting it all on the line, body and soul. I want that IBF belt, I don’t have the option to go for another belt or down another route. This is it for me, and that means he’s going to have the toughest fight of his career, I can guarantee that.

“Tomasz Adamek had never been KO’d, so the momentum from that win in Poland was big. I felt it was time to take time off from work and put 100 percent into this.

“Back home, people know me as a certain type of fighter. On day one of my career I lost in the first round and that’s why on the back of my shirt it says ‘The Art Of Bouncing Back.’ Those aren’t just words. Boxing is the most brutal sport when it comes to trying to bounce back. Once you lose, everybody is gone from your side. There are fighters out there that say they want to bounce back but they don’t have the guts to put themselves in a position to do it. I put myself in the fight with Wilder and I went to Poland and beat Adamek to bounce back and show people who I am.

“You have to prove yourself in this sport and then you can claim the rewards. I didn’t have an easy road to get here, I’ve had to do it the hard way and I’ve earned my way here.’’

About Showtime Networks:
Showtime Networks Inc. (SNI), a wholly-owned subsidiary of CBS Corporation, owns and operates the premium television networks SHOWTIME®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL™ and FLIX®, and also offers SHOWTIME ON DEMAND®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL™ ON DEMAND and FLIX ON DEMAND®, and the network’s authentication service SHOWTIME ANYTIME®. Showtime Digital Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of SNI, operates the stand-alone streaming service SHOWTIME®. SHOWTIME is currently available to subscribers via cable, DBS and telco providers, and as a stand-alone streaming service through Apple®, Roku®, Amazon and Google. Consumers can also subscribe to SHOWTIME via Hulu, Sony PlayStation® Vue and Amazon Prime Video. SNI also manages Smithsonian Networks™, a joint venture between SNI and the Smithsonian Institution, which offers Smithsonian Channel™, and offers Smithsonian Earth™ through SN Digital LLC. SNI markets and distributes sports and entertainment events for exhibition to subscribers on a pay-per-view basis through SHOWTIME PPV. For more information, go to www.SHO.com.

The WBA have officially sanctioned a blockbuster battle between Anthony Joshua MBE and Wladimir Klitschko for the spring of 2017 for the Super title – but only if Joshua successfully defends his IBF World Heavyweight title against Eric Molina at the Manchester Arena on December 10, live on Sky Sports Box Office in the UK and on SHOWTIME in the US.

Joshua defends his crown for the second time in his third straight clash with American opposition having ripped the strap from Charles Martin with a second round KO win in February at The O2 and defending the belt against Dominic Breazeale with a seventh round stoppage at his London fortress in June, extending his impressive run of KO wins to 17 in the paid ranks.

The 27 year old Olympic hero now faces his toughest test to date knowing that his clash with Klitschko is on the line along with his precious IBF belt.

Klitschko ruled the Heavyweight division for 15 years after landing the WBO crown on October 14 2000 and over that stretch adding the IBF, WBA, IBO and Ring magazine titles over a stunning career, before defeat to Tyson Fury in November. The 1996 Olympic gold medal hero fights in the UK for the second time in his glittering career having beaten Monte Barrett in London in July 2000 in his last fight before he became World king and his incredible domination of the Heavyweight scene began.

“It’s been an arduous wait to gain official approval but we were delighted to receive the news that the WBA will official sanction the fight between Anthony Joshua and Wladimir Klitschko for the WBA super title,” said Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn.

“We will now move forward with Bernd Boente and Team Klitschko in planning the date and venue knowing that victory against Eric Molina in Manchester on December 10 is more important than ever.”

There’s a huge card in support of the main event as Dillian Whyte defends his British Heavyweight title against bitter London rival Dereck Chisora in an official eliminator for the WBC title. Whyte makes the second defence of his strap after seeing off fellow Brixton man Ian Lewison in Glasgow last month, while former World title challenger Chisora can get his hands on the Lord Lonsdale belt for the second time.

Scott Quigg returns to action after treatment on his broken jaw following his unification blockbuster with Carl Frampton, and the Bury star moves up to Featherweight as he looks to regain his status as a World champion.

Kal Yafai can become Birmingham’s first World champion but the unbeaten 27 year old faces a tough task to rip the WBA Super-Flyweight title against Luis Concepcion, the two-weight World champion that will enter the ring in his 11th World title outing.

Irish amateur sensation Katie Taylor boxes for the second time in the paid ranks after making her pro debut at The SSE Arena, Wembley on November 26, Heavyweight wrecking ball ‘King Kong’ Luis Ortiz fights in Europe for the second time after clashing with Malik Scott in Monte-Carlo on November 12 and Hosea Burton will defend his British Light-Heavyweight title against Frank Buglioni.

Tickets go on sale to Matchroom Boxing Fight Pass members at midday on Thursday November 3 from the Fight Pass members via this link: bit.ly/JoshuaMolina. Tickets are priced at £40, £60, £80, £100, £150, £200, £300 and £500, with Inner Ringside VIP tickets priced at £800 – due to the high demand for the event, tickets are capped at FOUR per Fight Pass member.

Tickets go on general sale at midday on Friday November 4. Tickets priced £40 to £500 will be available from http://www.manchester-arena.com/ and on 0844 847 8000 VIP tickets are £800 and available exclusively from Matchroom Boxing www.matchroomboxing.com.

Face value tickets for December 10 are also be available from http://www.stubhub.co.uk/matchroom-boxing-tickets/ . StubHub is the official ticket partner and marketplace of Matchroom Boxing and Anthony Joshua.

Anthony Joshua MBE is set to defend his IBF World Heavyweight title against Eric Molina at the Manchester Arena on December 10, live on Sky Sports Box Office in the UK and on SHOWTIME in the US.

Joshua puts his crown on the line for the second time and fights his third American in a row having destroyed Charles Martin inside two rounds to rip the title from the St Louis man in April at The O2 in London and then stopping Dominic Breazeale in the seventh round at the same venue in June, extending his unbeaten run in the paid ranks to 17 wins, all inside the distance.

Molina becomes the latest man to attempt to derail the Olympic Gold medal hero, the Texan is looking to get his hands on the top prize in his second World title tilt after challenging Deontay Wilder for the WBC crown in June 2015. The 34 year old enters the bout full of confidence after travelling to Poland and knocking out Tomasz Adamek in the tenth round of their clash for the IBF Inter-Continental strap in April.

“I am pleased that everything is now set for December 10 and I can concentrate on getting the business done in the ring,” said Joshua. “There has been plenty of talk about who I may face but all I’m doing is concentrating on finishing Molina in style and putting on a great show.

“Every fight is dangerous in this division and this is no exception. I saw Molina have a great fight with Wilder and he is now coming off a strong KO win against Adamek in Poland.

“I’m expecting this to be the toughest fight of my career so far and I will be ready for an all-out war.”

“There is no Heavyweight in the world that has bounced back like I have,” said Molina. “That’s the man that Joshua faces on December 10 and that man is a very dangerous one.

“He’ll fight the toughest Molina that anybody has ever seen, just like Adamek fought the toughest Molina.

“I’m confident. These type of fights don’t shake me up, I’m a very strong mental fighter. I know exactly what I’ve got to do to prepare myself in the amount of time. I know exactly what I’ve got to do, mentally, physically, to go there and perform.

“When you walk out into the atmosphere, half the battle is the mental battle, and if you can stay in the moment mentally you have a shot in any fight.”

There’s a huge card in support of the main event as Dillian Whyte defends his British Heavyweight title against bitter London rival Dereck Chisora in an official eliminator for the WBC title. Whyte makes the second defence of his strap after seeing off fellow Brixton man Ian Lewison in Glasgow last month, while former World title challenger Chisora can get his hands on the Lord Lonsdale belt for the second time.

Scott Quigg returns to action after treatment on his broken jaw following his unification blockbuster with Carl Frampton, and the Bury star moves up to Featherweight as he looks to regain his status as a World champion.

Kal Yafai can become Birmingham’s first World champion but the unbeaten 27 year old faces a tough task to rip the WBA Super-Flyweight title against Luis Concepcion, the two-weight World champion that will enter the ring in his 11th World title outing.

Irish amateur sensation Katie Taylor boxes for the second time in the paid ranks after making her pro debut at The SSE Arena, Wembley on November 26, Heavyweight wrecking ball ‘King Kong’ Luis Ortiz fights in Europe for the second time after clashing with Malik Scott in Monte-Carlo on November 12 and Hosea Burton will defend his British Light-Heavyweight title against Frank Buglioni.

“The Heavyweight division has been turned on its head in the last few months and while many are standing still waiting, I’m delighted to get this huge card up and running in Manchester,” said promoter Eddie Hearn.

“I have spoken to Eric Molina at length and I know this is going to be a big test for Anthony. We saw in the Wilder fight that he can punch and doesn’t give in and is coming off a strong knockout win against Adamek in his back yard in Poland. We have requested an exception from the IBF for this fight and although the plans are for a major unification in the spring this fight requires Anthony’s full focus.

“The card is one of the strongest we have produced, supported by a huge all-British Heavyweight grudge match between Dillian Whyte and Dereck Chisora which will be an official eliminator for the WBC World title.

“We are delighted to see the return of Scott Quigg who will now campaign at Featherweight and Birmingham’s Kal Yafai has a chance to make history in a brutal fight against World champion Luis Concepcion.

“One of the most exciting Heavyweights in world boxing Luis Ortiz will feature and Ireland’s Katie Taylor will continue to break the mould in front of a sold out 21,000 crowd. The re-scheduled British Light-Heavyweight clash between Hosea Burton and Frank Buglioni is sure to produce fireworks and there will also be further names added in the following weeks.”

Tickets go on sale to Matchroom Boxing Fight Pass members at midday on Thursday November 3 from the Fight Pass members via this link: bit.ly/JoshuaMolina. Tickets are priced at £40, £60, £80, £100, £150, £200, £300 and £500, with Inner Ringside VIP tickets priced at £800 – due to the high demand for the event, tickets are capped at FOUR per Fight Pass member.

Tickets go on general sale at midday on Friday November 4. Tickets priced £40 to £500 will be available from http://www.manchester-arena.com/ and on 0844 847 8000 VIP tickets are £800 and available exclusively from Matchroom Boxing www.matchroomboxing.com.

Face value tickets for December 10 are also be available from http://www.stubhub.co.uk/matchroom-boxing-tickets/ . StubHub is the official ticket partner and marketplace of Matchroom Boxing and Anthony Joshua.

Hosea Burton will defend his British Light-Heavyweight title against Frank Buglioni at the Manchester Arena on December 10.

Burton landed the crown with an impressive sixth round stoppage win over Miles Shinkwin at the same venue in February but two scheduled defences were cancelled through injuries to his opponents.

Burton was set to meet Tony Dodson at Goodison Park in Liverpool in May but Dodson snapped his Achilles, then Buglioni was slated to meet Burton in September but the Londoner pulled out of their Manchester meeting after sustaining a cut in sparring. Burton boxed on both occasions, with a third round stoppage over Fernando Castaneda a ninth win inside the distance in 18 pro outings.

Former World Super-Middleweight title challenger Buglioni fights for the British strap for the first time in his career, but unbeaten champ Burton

“Frank is a good lad but this is business and I want to go forward so I need to beat him,” said Burton. “This is my division, my weight and I am the man in the Light-Heavyweight division – I’ll show that on December 10.

“I was frustrated that he pulled out of the last one with four weeks to go with a tiny nick over his eye. It was hard to stay motivated for the last fight but I had too good a training camp to mess it up so I stayed focused and got another stoppage win.”

Burton’s clash with Buglioni is part of a blockbuster night of action in Manchester as Anthony Joshua MBE defends his IBF World Heavyweight title for the second time and Kal Yafai aims to become Birmingham’s first World champion as he challenges WBA Super-Flyweight champion Luis Concepcion.

Further details on the card and tickets will be released soon.

According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, a bout between IBF Heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua and Wladmir Klitschko appears to be close to fruiyion provided the WBA will sanction the bout.

“We will go with the WBA ruling,” Klitschko manager Bernd Boente said. “We hope they rule quickly because Dec. 10 is not far away.”

“For Wladimir it is very important to have the WBA title in a fight with Joshua,” Boente said. “We made a deal with Eddie easily. We tried to find an agreement and we made a deal. If the fight doesn’t happen now and Wladimir and Joshua both win their next fight, we can do the fight under the same deal next year and it would be even bigger. The framework is there.”

“For Wladimir, it’s also about the WBA title. For him, this is important,” Boente said. “It is his mission. He is serious when he says it is not only about the money.”

“The WBO wants a tournament, which is up to them,” Boente said. “We love the WBO. Wladimir held the WBO title for a long time and it was the first world title he won. He respects the WBO, but if they do a tournament Wladimir would not participate. At this stage of his career it makes no sense.”

Matchroom Boxing and the IBF World Heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua MBE have both agreed to extend their long-standing partnerships with the world’s largest ticket marketplace, StubHub.

Matchroom Boxing and Anthony Joshua will continue to transparently list face value tickets on StubHub. StubHub will also serve as the Official Ticket Marketplace for all Matchroom Boxing and Anthony Joshua fights. StubHub will continue to have a broad range of branding, digital, social and activation rights, including access to Anthony for promotional video content, building on the success of the No Hype video released in November 2015.

For the first time, Matchroom Fight Pass members will be able to purchase face value tickets directly through StubHub during a pre-sale window ahead of each bout covering Matchroom’s stable of boxers including the undefeated Joshua.

Nick Harford, Head of Business Development & Partnerships at StubHub International said: “This is an exciting time for British boxing and we are delighted to extend our partnerships with both Matchroom Boxing and Anthony Joshua Anthony’s progress has been extraordinary and his undefeated record remains after an impressive performance against Dominic Breazeale. We are looking forward to further developing our successful partnerships with Anthony and his team, alongside our partners at Matchroom Boxing.”

Eddie Hearn, Group Managing Director, Matchroom Sport said: “I am delighted that we have agreed to extend our long-term partnership, which allows StubHub to provide fans with a safe and secure platform to buy face-value tickets for our events. In addition, StubHub have taken over hosting the Matchroom Fight Pass presale ticketing which will make the process smoother for our loyal members, who can now pick their seats via an interactive seat-mapping tool.”

IBF Heavyweight champion, Anthony Joshua said: “I am very pleased to be renewing my partnership with StubHub. We have developed a very strong relationship from an early stage in my professional career and I thank them for the continued support. It is key for me to be able to give my fans a safe and reliable platform to purchase face value tickets to my fights.”

StubHub’s UK partnerships include: The O2, The SSE Wembley Arena, Tottenham Hotspur, Everton, Global Radio Summertime Ball and Jingle Bell Ball.

Anthony Joshua MBE will defend his IBF World Heavyweight title at the Manchester Arena on Saturday November 26.

Joshua landed the strap with a brutal second round KO win over former champion Charles Martin at The O2 in London in April and defended it with a seventh round stoppage win over Dominic Breazeale at his Greenwich fortress in June.

The 2012 Olympic hero puts the belt on the line for a second time in his second outing at the famous Manchester venue where he stopped Konstantin Airich in three rounds in September 2014 in his eighth pro outing.

“When I first started my professional career I travelled all round the country fighting, which I loved, this is taking me back to the grass roots,” said Joshua. “I can’t wait to get back up north and show the people of Manchester how much I have improved since the last time I was there. I have been inspired over the summer by the fighters in the Olympics, it has given me a new perspective and huge hunger to get back in ring.

“It has taken a bit of time to officially announce the fight, we want this to be a spectacular show, all the way up the card and it takes time to get these things right.”

An announcement on the opponent and ticket details will be released the week commencing September 26.

ROCHESTER, N.Y. (Aug. 18, 2016) – The eight fighters who’ll be fighting on ShoBox: The New Generation tomorrow/Friday, Aug. 19, live on SHOWTIME® (10 p.m. ET/PT) at Rhinos Stadium in Rochester, N.Y., all made weight Thursday.

Undefeated Jarrell “Big Baby” Miller (17-0-1, 15 KOs) faces his toughest test to date in veteran Fred Kassi (18-5-1, 10 KOs) in the main event, which will take place at the outdoor USL soccer venue here. The co-main event features promising Louisiana lightweight “Rock Hard Mighty” Mason Menard (31-1, 23 KOs) facing his most dangerous foe to date in Bahodir “Baha” Mamadjonov (18-2, 11 KOs) of Houston, Texas, by way of Uzbekistan in a 10-round battle for the WBO NABO Lightweight title.

Plus, undefeated welterweight knockout artist Bakhtiyar Eyubov (10-0, 10 KOs) of Brooklyn, N.Y., by way of Kazakhstan, steps up to face veteran Karim Mayfield (19-3-1, 11 KOs) of San Francisco in a 10-round clash. And unbeaten Antonio Nieves (16-0-1, 8 KOs) of Cleveland will square off against Mexico’s Alejandro Santiago (11-2-1, 3 KOs) in a 10-round bantamweight bout for Nieves’ WBO NABO Title.

The Weights: Miller tipped the scales at 296 ½ pounds, while Kassi weighed 237 ¼ pounds. Menard weighed 134 ½ pounds, while his opponent, Mamadjonov, measured half pound over the limit on his first try, but hit the 135 mark half an hour later. Nieves weighed 117 even, while Santiago weighed 117 ½ pounds. Eyubov weighed 142 ½, while Mayfiled measured at 142 ¾ pounds.

The event is presented by Salita Promotions and Greg Cohen Promotions.

Here’s what the principals had to say prior to the weigh-in:

Jarrell Miller, Undefeated Heavyweight Prospect

“Mike Tyson was a freak of nature. Vitali Klitschko was a freak of nature. I’m also a freak of nature. I’m 6’ 4” and pushing 280. I’m a big guy, but I’m athletic. I can move. I can punch, and I was a kickboxer. I’m not your average heavyweight. I’m not trying to change the blueprint of how heavyweights should be. I’m just being myself and doing my job.

“They are like, ‘we’ve seen his body, we’ve seen his size. We’ll outwork him,’ but they are wrong. Never can judge a book by its cover. I’ll outwork him in the ring. I’m fast, I’m good and I can punch. He’s not going to see me coming.

“Don’t let my weight fool you. I’ve been doing cardio. I’m in really good shape and I’m ready to go the distance.

“Every fight, I have to know how to adjust. I feel like Fred has never been in with a guy like me. He’s been with [Chris] Arreola, who doesn’t move as much, and he also fought [Dominic] Breazeale, who doesn’t have good footwork. I’m telling you, he’s never fought a big athletic body like me. He’s in for a surprise.

“I know my jab is going to be on his face. For me, it’s not just about winning, it’s about performance. Every fight in my career from now on it’s about more than winning. Now I have to prove myself. I have to prove I’m worthy of a title shot.

“I wasn’t happy with my [Jan. 22] win over Donovan Dennis. I knew I could’ve done better than a seventh-round TKO. That’s why I’m pushing myself on this fight. I want to win convincingly and I will.

“Anthony Joshua is a punk. Deontay Wilder, don’t get me started. Now, Tyson Fury can actually punch. I’ll give him that. From all of them, Fury in my opinion is the better one. That’s why I want to fight him. I believe you should go for the hardest ones first. You take the biggest guy out first and then, you go for the easy ones. That’s how it’s supposed to be and that’s what I’d like to do. Take the hard ones out first. Fury, you are next.”

Fred Kassi, Heavyweight Prospect

“I’ll be a little bit heavier than usual for this fight, but I’m feeling good. I’m feeling ready. I hope the judges see that. I have had some bad experiences with judges recently.

“I have had some big fights. I dealt with big guys and talkers, but that doesn’t concern me because in the ring it’s going to be just the two of us. That is when the real fight is going to happen.

“I did my job against Arreola, I did what I had to do against Dominic Breazeale. I got robbed.

I’ve never fought a heavyweight shorter than me. I’m usually the shorter one in the ring, but I know my game. I know what I’m doing.”

“I’ve gotten robbed so many times. I was coming on hard against Hughie Fury. I didn’t do great in the first rounds, but I was leading in the late ones, and he was slowing down. The stoppage was a relief for him. He was running out of gas.

Mason Menard, Lightweight Prospect

“After that last knockout, so many people were actually exhilarated about it. People that didn’t even know me, they’d come up and say, ‘Are you Mason? Man, I saw that KO [and show me the video]. I’ve watched it a thousand times.’”

On his opponent…

“He’s one of those guys that no one wants to fight. I took this fight as soon as it was offered because it’s another step up for me. I have to beat guys like this to get to the A-class of fighters. He’s not a bad fighter but he’s not A-class. I simply have to beat guys like this.

“Hand speed and foot speed, those are my difference makers.”

On his growth beyond the La., circuit now, after 35 fights:

“I am glad to be getting the national exposure now. We had some step up fights in Louisiana at first. Now, we are right where we need to be. It’s all happening now.”

Bahodir Mamadjonov Lightweight Prospect

“Menard fought many of the same fighters that we have. Many guys in the same class as we did. So, we are not impressed with his record or his knockouts. We prepared for seven or eight weeks. Although we only knew of this opponent for two-three weeks. At this level, this is no surprise. We are ready.

“We tried to fight him years ago. He was 17-1 or 18-1 at the time and he didn’t want the fight. Now, he’s out of options. I am by far the toughest test of his career.

“We are close to a world title now. A win here, our third appearance on SHOWTIME, and against a world-rated lightweight…. “I will bring the fight to Mason Menard. That is my style and it doesn’t change for this fight. He’s fighting to prove he’s legitimate. I am here to earn my title shot.”

Antonio Nieves, Bantamweight Prospect

“When they tell you are going to fight and then you hear your opponent got injured, you get a little bit down. Thankfully, Alejandro Santiago was ready to step up.

“We’ve noticed he’s successful when the fighter gets in his face, and I have the right strategy for that.

“From my last fight I took two weeks off, and then back in the gym. I didn’t even know the name of my opponent. I just wanted to be ready to go when the fight was set.

“I’m ranked fifth in the WBO, after Santiago I want to fight for the WBO bantamweight title and then, I will probably look for Rau’shee Warren to unify the titles. I think there’s not enough action in my division and I’m ready to change that.”

Alejandro Santiago, Bantamweight Prospect

“I’ve known about this fight for two months. I was about 130 pounds when I found out. I’ve been training hard and I feel ready to move up in weight. I’m ready for my opponent.

“I like to box. I like to get in my opponent’s face. I like to hit and not get hit. I’ve worked a lot on my defensive skills.

“I know Nieves is a tough fighter. He’s skilled. But I have a good strategy. I’ll approach him smartly, and I’ll get the decision.”

Bakhtiyar Eyubov, Undefeated Welterweight Prospect

“We have been training in a large ring, specifically to prepare to cut the ring off. We are prepared to go 10 rounds, to go 15 rounds. We are not worried about going rounds.”

(Re: only 10 fights so far in career):

“I grew up in the gym, had a great amateur career. I expect to progress quickly just like the great amateurs before me. I am at the peak of my strength and I am ready. Karim has never been stopped, never been dropped. He’s a real test.

“I grew up in a rough environment, in the streets. I am not intimidated. If not for boxing, I would be in a very bad situation back home (Kazakhstan).”

(Re: Mayfield)

“It will be a real fight. I hope he is ready 100 percent because we are. I am not a God, we can’t predict, but know this, it will be a good show. Let him do his job. I will do my job. And I will have him out of there within five rounds.”

Karim Mayfield, Welterweight Prospect

“I’m a world class opponent. I’ve fought better fighters than him. He will be taking his first loss.

“For those that say it’s too late at 36, I tell them they are wrong. I’m not worn out. I haven’t been in one-sided wars or beatings. I’ve been taking care of myself. I’m experienced and I know my craft.

“I’m planning to show my opponent I know how to utilize the ring. I’ve only been down once. I know my opponent is a strong fighter and that he’s going to come strong, but he’s not going to take me down.

“I’m used to training late. I hit the gym at 7 or 8 o’clock at night. Our fight is late tomorrow, but I’m used to it. At that time Eyubov is going to sleep. So, I’m going to do him a favor and I’ll put him to sleep.

“I feel that I still have the opportunity to thrive, to move forward in my boxing career. There’s still a lot of me left.”

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About ShoBox: The New Generation
Since its inception in July 2001, the critically acclaimed SHOWTIME boxing series, ShoBox: The New Generation has featured young talent matched tough. The ShoBox philosophy is to televise exciting, crowd-pleasing and competitive matches while providing a proving ground for willing prospects determined to fight for a world title. Some of the growing list of the 67 fighters who have appeared on ShoBox and advanced to garner world titles includes: Andre Ward, Deontay Wilder, Erislandy Lara, Shawn Porter, Gary Russell Jr., Lamont Peterson, Guillermo Rigondeaux, Omar Figueroa, Nonito Donaire, Devon Alexander, Carl Froch, Robert Guerrero, Timothy Bradley, Jessie Vargas, Juan Manuel Lopez, Chad Dawson, Paulie Malignaggi, Ricky Hatton, Kelly Pavlik, Paul Williams and more.

About Salita Promotions
Salita Promotions was founded in 2010 by Dmitriy Salita, a professional boxer and world-title challenger who saw the need for a promotional entity to feature boxing’s best young prospects and established contenders in North America and around the world. Viewers watching fighters on worldwide television networks including Showtime, ESPN, Spike TV, Universal Sports Network and MSG have enjoyed Salita Promotions fight action in recent years. We pride ourselves on offering our fighters opportunities inside and outside the ring. Salita Promotions looks forward to continuing to grow and serve the needs of fight fans around the globe.

Anthony Joshua MBE is the 4/1 favourite with William Hill to win the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award.

Joshua defended his IBF World Heavyweight title in style on June 25, stopping the brave unbeaten American Dominic Breazeale in the seventh round at The O2 in London.

Joshua landed the belt at the Greenwich venue in April, ripping the crown from another unbeaten American, Charles Martin, inside two rounds thanks to a pair of vicious right hands.

The Olympic gold medal hero will take a break over the summer before defending his belt for the second time later in the year, where another strong performance could see him become the first boxer to win the award since Joe Calzaghe in 2007 and the fifth fighter to take the trophy home following two-time winner Henry Cooper, Barry McGuigan, Lennox Lewis and Calzaghe.

“Anthony Joshua is one of the most adored sports personalities in the country,” said Tony Kenny, head of sponsorship PR at William Hill. “If you couple that with his World championship winning performance this year then it’s easy to see why he’s our favourite to win the BBC award.”

Leicester City and England striker Jamie Vardy is second favourite at 5/1 with Real Madrid and Wales hero Gareth Bale at 9/1. Andy Murray won the award for the second time in 2015 and is 10/1 to make it a hat-trick as he bids for glory at Wimbledon and the Olympics in Rio, and he’s joined at that price by Jessica Ennis-Hill who bids to defend her Heptathlon gold this summer.

The 2016 BBC Sports Personality of the Year ceremony takes place at the Genting Arena in Birmingham on December 18.

William Hill have backed three of Joshua’s fight nights so far and signed a deal ahead of his first defence to back the next three blockbuster shows topped by the Heavyweight sensation.

Anthony Joshua retained the IBF Heavyweight title with a 7th round stoppage over Dominic Breazeale at the 02 Arena in London.

In round seven, Joshua dropped Breazeale with a hard right. Breazaele got to his feet only to eat a hard barrage of punches that was punctuated by a right hand that sent him to the canvas and the bout was stopped at 1:01.

Joshus is 17-0 with 17 knockouts. Breazeale is now 17-1.

Follow all the action as Anthony Joshua defends the IBF Heavyweight title against Dominic Breazeale in a battle of undefeated former Olympians.  The action begins at 5:15 ET / 2:15 PT and 10:15 PM in England

BROWSER WILL REFRESH AUTOMATICALLY

Round 1: Joshua lands a 3 punch cobination

Round 2:  Upercut and right rock Brezaele

Round 3:  Joshua showing good hand speed.  Brezeale taking shots well.

Round 4:  Joshua lands a big uppercut

Round 5:  Breazeale right eye beginning to swell.

Round 6:  Joshua teeing off on the bad eye of Breazeale

Round 7: Joshua lands a hard right..FOLOW UP COMBINATION DROPS BREAZEALE.    JOSHUA LANDS A HARD LEFT HOOK..3 MORE PUNCHES DOWN GOES BREZEALE AGAIN AND THE FIGHT STOPPED

IBF Heavyweight World Championship
Anthony Joshua – 243 ¼ Pounds
Dominic Breazeale – 255 Pounds
Referee: HOWARD FOSTER (UK), Judges: DAVE PARRIS (UK), ROBIN TAYLOR (USA), PASQUALE PROCOPIO (Canada)

# # #

For more information visit www.SHO.com/Sports, follow on Twitter @ShowtimeBoxing and @SHOSports, or become a fan on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/SHOBoxing and https://www.facebook.com/ShoSports

Also follow Dominic Breazeale on Twitter @TroubleBoxing, Anthony Joshua @AnthonyJoshua and use hashtag #JoshuaBreazeale to join the conversation.

LONDON (June 23, 2016) – Undefeated IBF Heavyweight World Champion Anthony Joshua (16-0, 16 KOs) and fellow unbeaten American challenger Dominic Breazeale (17-0, 15 KOs), participated in the final press conference on Thursday at Sky Sports Studios in London, just two days before their showdown this Saturday.

The British sensation and 2012 Olympic Games Gold Medalist, Joshua will make the first defense of his title against Breazeale, a 2012 U.S. Olympian from Upland, Calif., this Saturday, June 25 on SHOWTIME BOXING INTERNATIONAL® from a sold-out The O2 in London, live on SHOWTIME® on at 5:15 p.m. ET/2:15 p.m. PT.

Fellow heavyweight world champion Deontay Wilder, the undefeated WBC titleholder, will join the SHOWTIME announce team as an in-studio guest analyst for coverage of Joshua-Breazeale from New York.

A few hours later Saturday, in primetime on CBS (9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT), Keith “One Time” Thurman will defend his WBA Welterweight World Title against former champ Shawn “Showtime” Porter in a welterweight blockbuster that headlines SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING on CBS, presented by Premier Boxing Champions.

Below is what the fighters had to say at the final press conference, followed by some recent fight week quotes. (Courtesy Sky Sports and Matchroom Sport)

ANTHONYJOSHUA:

“You’re in my jungle now. There’s no pressure on me.

“Once that bell goes, you can’t hide the instinct, the instinct that you want to get someone out of there. I hope I can go in there, stay relaxed and do what I planned to do. But once that bell rings something just comes over you and you want to get him out of there ASAP.

“There will always be pressure. But look, it’s always been the same concept: Train hard – it’s the same ring. It hasn’t changed.

“I’ve got nothing to lose. I’ve always explained let’s get rid of the belts, the atmosphere, because when the bell goes it’s just me and him in the ring. Two gladiators, two respectful warriors coming together. We’re going to slug it out and put our 0s on the line.”

“I’m prepared, Dominic is prepared well, and one of us has to take a loss.

“Each fight is a stepping stone to the big tests. I want to look like the real deal.”

“I think we’re in the golden era of boxing again.”

DOMINIC BREAZEALE:
“I respect you as a fighter, but I’m going to beat you. I’ve got to beat the best of the best.”

“I can’t wait, it’s been an opportunity I’ve been waiting eight years for this. It’s an opportunity of a lifetime and I’m ready for this.

“Expect fireworks. We’ll be going round for round, punch for punch and I expect to knock out Joshua.”

“I got a big right hand, I have a big left hook. I stand 6-foot-7, 255 pounds. I’m unorthodox – I’m a guy that can fight on the inside, I’m a guy that can take a punch, I’m a guy that can give a punch. So if any one of those given things show up on Saturday night I’m getting a knockout, for sure.

“It’s a major advantage just for me to have Anthony Joshua the whole time. I don’t want him at any given point for him to feel like he’s in his comfort zone, his own backyard or his own little lion’s den.

“That’s what I came across the pond to do. I came across the pond to get my belt and take it back home with me.

“It’s my Super Bowl. Being a former football player, this is my Super Bowl.”

“Everybody keeps comparing me to Charles Martin, the only thing that we have in common is that we’re both American. We have a completely different fight style, different goals in life.

“I’m a big puncher, so is Anthony Joshua. He has the belt and I intend to have it on Saturday night.

ADDITIONAL FIGHT WEEK QUOTES:

ANTHONY JOSHUA

“I’m 16 fights, 16 wins, Dominic is 17 fights, 17 wins. We’ve been pro for the same amount of time, amateurs for the same time so we’re at a similar level on paper.

“People think this will end in two rounds? Brilliant. I am winning fights early because of my talent and hard work. Where I am in my career, it’s a perfect fight.

“I don’t overlook anyone. People talk and talk, that’s irrelevant. It’s all about whether he can fight. I think he believes in himself, but he knows what’s in store here, he needs to know I’m serious about this boxing. He thinks he’s going to KO me, he’s dismissed Charles Martin — sometimes you just have to humble somebody and show levels, let them know it’s not that easy.

“The second I stepped in to the pros it was ‘Boom!’ — Anthony Joshua – headlining. That’s not down to me, its media channels and people wanting to get to know the guy behind the gloves. So it’s been hard to build a career at the right pace without criticism because people want to see me in massive fights right now.

“You can’t jump from hero to zero, there are people guiding us over a long and a dangerous career. People have to understand that it’s a development of a career, and if I ever train a fighter, I’ll tell them the same thing.”

On fellow heavyweight world champions Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury:
“This won’t be my only defense, I want there to be lots and lots, and at the right time I will fight David Haye, Tyson Fury, Deontay Wilder and the rest. We’re in an era now where we have to fight each other. There’s never been an era when the best don’t fight the best at heavyweight — but they have to happen at the right time, and they will.

“We are all world champions as we hold all the belts that are available. We’re all talented. Deontay has defended his title multiple times so you have to give him credit for that. Tyson and I haven’t defended yet, so I put Deontay at the top. But Tyson beat Wladimir Klitschko who reigned for such a long time.

“I am happy because I became a world champion in my 16th fight and they won theirs later in their careers. But Tyson beat the main man in the division, and Deontay has defended his belt lots of times, so I am in third right now, but I am building my way up.

“Put the belts to one side, they don’t give you magical powers. A lot of fighters lose their belt in their first defense. It’s about developing your raw talent and making sure you keep on an upward curve because there’s hungry young challengers snapping at your heels all the time, ready to expose you – and I refuse that to happen to me.”

On Charles Martin:
“Before the fight, no one criticized (Charles) Martin. He was undefeated, knocking guys out, tall southpaw, dangerous. Bookies were taking a lot of bets on him knocking me out. Tyson Fury backed him to do just that and a lot of people thought it would be tricky. Up until I beat him, he was seen as a worthy fighter. I figured him out quickly and I made him look bad. He didn’t look like the champion people thought he was, but you have to respect him.”

On thinking about losing:
“I think about losing all the time, I’m scared of it. That keeps me humble and working hard. I don’t think people are going to beat me or anything, but I don’t want to lose, and I know that if I work hard and keep improving, I won’t lose.

“I get enough attention from this job. There are 20,000 fans at the fights, millions watching on TV around the world. I don’t need to seek attention. I’m not a trash talker because the fists do the talking.’’

On being a role model:
“I know that there are a lot of kids watching me now and their parents say ‘my son loves you’ and that’s in my mind.

“I’ll be myself all the time, but that sense of being a role model and having kid’s look up to you, that checks the emotions that could come out if you get wound up. You have to conduct yourself.’’

On Tyson Fury:
“Tyson talks a lot. I hear so many different things, if he was consistent with what he says then maybe I’d think he was digging a bit, but it’s just water off a duck’s back. I don’t know him, but as long as people are saying ‘when are you going to fight him?’ then I like him because he is relevant.

“It would be such a huge fight and one that would be part of my legacy. I think because he’s beaten Wladimir once he can do it again. I didn’t think he’d win the first fight, but he pulled it off.

“I’d love to fight Tyson – it’s a match-up that needs to happen. There have been talks, whether they are a quick chat or serious negotiations, but you can’t click your fingers and come up with a mega fight. It takes time, but they are in the pipeline and we’re building towards them, and in the meantime I want to test myself and learn my craft. I need to perform well to prove that I can handle the massive fights.’’

On fellow British heavyweight David Haye:
“David is running the show and people know it, so when he goes in against soft opponents, he’s putting his neck on the line to get the stick. Fans expect more from him and he’s not meeting those levels, and that’s where the backlash comes from. The people he’s calling out versus the two guys he has fought, they just don’t add up, and that’s what people are frustrated about.

“I don’t think you can knock the Shannon Briggs fight. He’s made a lot of noise, he’s old school and it’s a good fight for David to take, win and move upwards. Shannon had made noise and he’s got his moment and who knows? Maybe he can shock the world. He’s old, but he trains hard and he’s in great condition, and that’s why people love the heavyweights because it’s that one shot.

“A fight with Fury and I is the biggest fight in British boxing in my opinion. The Haye fight is big too; there’s enough media interest for it to be big. It’s already big and we’re not even fighting yet, so imagine how big it would be once we get in there. It’d be unbelievable and that’s why I am so interested in the fights.”

DOMINIC BREAZEALE:
“I plan on putting on some extreme pressure and taking Joshua to places he’s never been. We’ll find out if he can handle it.

“Do I want to see him go into uncharted territory? Of course, without a doubt.

“I’ve been there, I know what it feels like and I’ve done it several times now. At the same time, I’m not going to let an opportunity pass me. If I see something I can take in the first or second round, I’m definitely going to get him out of there.

“I’ve sparred guys that are bigger than me, I’ve sparred some guys smaller than me. I’ve been the tallest thus far (of his professional opponents), but I don’t think the difference in a matter of inches is going to make that big of a difference. The guys I’ve sparred with are 10 times better than Anthony Joshua.

“I think that it’s going to be one of those situations that it is not going to be a difference of size or weight. It’s going to be the difference of skill and experience.

“When you think of a heavyweight champion you want to make sure he’s fought the best, and I think that’s why Joshua has chosen me as his opponent to defend against. That’s what he plans on getting out of the situation if he can make it through the 12 rounds.

“I think Joshua’s thinking of me as a stepping stone and he’s going to be sorry about that. He’s just wrong. He’s fighting a guy at 6-foot-7, 255 pounds that brings the pressure and a great pace from round-to-round.

“I’m one of those guys that I might take a shot, I might work some defense or I might work a strong jab. Either way, I’m going to make it a fight. All of my opponents have been down on the canvas and I don’t think Joshua is going to come shy of that as well.

“I’ve been picked as the smaller guy in the ring, by the IBF as a stepping stone and I feel like my back is against the wall. I’m going to come out fighting.

“To come here and win the IBF title in London is a major thing for me that I plan to achieve. Then I want to continuing to go after all the titles.

“My mind set has definitely changed. The situation that I’m in mentally is just different compared to some of my fights in the past. My confidence level is through the roof and physically I feel great.

“I think the heavyweight division is getting ready to change. With individuals like myself, Deontay and Tyson, we have guys who are characters who bring a lot of charisma to the division. That’s something that we need. Yes, we are athletes but in the end we are entertainers and we want to see a show. I’m the type of guy that brings a show every single time I fight. It’s action-packed from the opening bell to the end, and fight fans are looking for that. That’s what is going to resurrect the heavyweight division.’’

On his win over Amir Mansour:
“That was another confidence booster for me. It’s one thing to finish a guy in the first round with three punches or something like that. It’s another thing to finish a guy in the sixth, seventh round with a combination of shots.

“Amir put me down on the canvas in the second, I battled back and ended up breaking the man’s jaw.

“It gives me something to work on. I know I was able to come back and be very successful from it. Anytime you get a win of that matter where you get a guy, break him down, break him down where he quits on the stool, it’s a huge confidence booster. It makes you understand as an athlete or as a professional boxer that you’ve got punching power, you just broke another man’s jaw.’’

On returning to London after the 2012 Olympics:
“I think it’s going to beautiful. It’s going to be great to go back to where my amateur career ended and beat the guy who won the gold medal. That’s going to be great. And then, on top of that, take away more hardware with the IBF Heavyweight title. You couldn’t ask for anything better.

“Then again I do understand and believe I’m a completely different fighter — not only am I a professional but I no longer fight an amateur style. I would consider myself a knockout artist with some pretty good punching power and that’s what I plan on showing the UK fans and my U.S. following. It’s a chapter that needs to be closed and I plan on doing that.’’

On the state of the heavyweight division:
“I believe that we’ve got a lot of heavyweights who are doing real well and are real successful in their situations, some being titleholders, some not. But I think it’s going to be a revolving circle. Me fighting Anthony Joshua, then going on to Deontay and Fury, Wladimir Klitschko might even hang around for a while. Will it ever be compared to the Ali days or Riddick Bowe and the Evander Holyfield days? I don’t know. Bowe and Holyfield had one great trilogy and I study it all the time. So it all depends on how much each fighter has left in him.’’

For more information visit www.SHO.com/Sports, follow on Twitter @ShowtimeBoxing and @SHOSports, or become a fan on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/SHOBoxing and https://www.facebook.com/ShoSports

Also follow Dominic Breazeale on Twitter @TroubleBoxing, Anthony Joshua @AnthonyJoshua and use hashtag #JoshuaBreazeale to join the conversation.

Deontay Wilder says that Anthony Joshua’s IBF World Heavyweight title clash with Dominic Breazeale is a 50-50 fight at The O2 in London on Saturday night (June 25) live on Sky Sports Box Office and on Showtime in the US.

Wilder will be part of the Showtime team covering the fight from New York City and the WBC king will be on the edge of his seat as he cannot split champion or challenger as Joshua prepares to defend the World title he landed in April with a devastating second round KO win over Charles Martin.

“I definitely see the fight as a 50-50,” said Wilder. “You’ve got two big Heavyweights, and the challenger wants what the champion has, and the champion wants to keep what he has.

“It’s going to be interesting because we’ve seen Breazeale in a lot of wars. He’s almost been taken out by some of the smaller Heavyweights, he’s been punched around, but he has always survived.

“We’ve seen Joshua has also been busted up as well, but he has kept his composure, and this fight is in his backyard amongst his people.

“I don’t put anything past Breazeale because he’s coming in hustlers’ territory. I think that it’ll be a good fight because of Breazeale – I think he really wants it.”

Wilder makes the fourth defence of his WBC strap on July 16 against Chris Arreola in his hometown of Alabama, and the 30 year old says that Joshua will feel like a different fighter as he goes into his first fight as World champion – but that there’s now an even bigger target on his back.

“Once you’ve got that belt, you feel like ‘I’m the man’,” said Wilder. “After the first fight, that’s when you really feel confident. You really feel you’re the man, you’re the champ. You’re the ruler once you’ve had your first defence.

“For Joshua, this is his first title defence, so he should feel some kind of security about himself and confidence about himself. But he’s going to find out that to continue his career and defend that title, these guys aren’t going to lay down after one punch or after two punches.

“They’re going to keep taking punches, they’re going to keep getting knocked down and they’re going to keep getting up. This is for a World title. This can bring you out of poverty, you know what I mean? For that reason, these challengers are hungry. That’s one of the things that I had to realise.

“I put myself in their position. When I was a challenger, I was hungry and I already had the mentality that ‘you’re going to really have to kill me or hurt me bad to get me out of this ring.’ So that’s the mentality that these challengers have.

“It’s going to be interesting when you have a guy with a big heart that really, really wants it and I think Breazeale really wants it. We’re going to see where his heart is. I can’t say what kind of heart he has, but we’re going to see.”

Breazeale is following compatriot Charles Martin into Joshua’s Greenwich fortress, where the 2012 Olympic gold medalist is fighting for the seventh time in his pro career. Wilder has boxed outside of the US many times – including his one-round KO of Audley Harrison MBE in Sheffield – and he believes Breazeale’s confidence must be sky-high to travel to Joshua’s backyard.

“It takes a lot of courage, will and heart to fight in someone’s backyard,” said Wilder. “It takes someone that has confidence in themselves. And not to mention going to someone else’s country, because then the environment has completely changed. It’s a big difference and not a lot of guys are willing to travel outside of their country where they would be uncomfortable.

“Only a very few that really want to build their legacy, such as myself, will travel and have no problem. I don’t like to worry about judges or nothing. You go do what you have to do. That’s just my philosophy and mentality as a champion now. When you say the Heavyweight Champion of the World, that’s why this is tough, we travel all over the world.”

Joshua’s clash with Breazeale tops a huge night of boxing at The O2 as George Groves and Martin Murray meet in an eliminator for the WBA World Super-Middleweight title.
Chris Eubank Jr defends his British Middleweight title against Welshman Tom Doran, John Wayne Hibbert clashes with Andrea Scarpa for the vacant WBC Silver Super-Lightweight title, Brixton Heavyweight Dillian Whyte returns to the fray, unbeaten Birmingham star Kal Yafai is in action, Olympic bronze medal man Anthony Ogogo continues his comeback from injury, Conor Benn fights for the third time in the paid ranks and there’s a debut for Team GB star Felix Cash.

NEW YORK (June 21, 2016) – WBC Heavyweight World Champion Deontay Wilder will join the SHOWTIME announce team as an in-studio analyst for the SHOWTIME BOXING INTERNATIONAL® presentation of the IBF Heavyweight World Championship between undefeated champion Anthony Joshua and unbeaten challenger Dominic Breazeale on Saturday, June 25, live on SHOWTIME (5:15 p.m. ET/2:15 p.m. PT).

The charismatic Wilder (36-0, 35 KOs) will provide commentary and insight from a New York studio along with Barry Tompkins and Steve Farhood before and after the fight.

Coverage of Joshua vs. Breazeale from the sold-out The O2 in London will be provided by Sky Sports with the play-by-play call from Nick Halling, analysis from Jim Watt, additional in-fight analysis from former WBA Heavyweight Champion David Haye, and post-fight interviews from Andy Scott.

An encore presentation of the SHOWTIME BOXING INTERNATIONAL telecast will air later that evening on SHOWTIME at 11 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT.

The 26-year-old Joshua (16-0, 16 KOs) has compiled a perfect knockout record of 16-0 with 16 knockouts since turning professional shortly after winning the 2012 Olympic Gold Medal. Earlier this year, Joshua earned the IBF Heavyweight World Championship with a second-round knockout of defending champion Charles Martin on SHOWTIME, earning a heavyweight belt in the fewest number of fights in more than 20 years. The showdown with Breazeale is Joshua’s first since signing a multi-fight licensing agreement for Showtime Networks Inc., to be the exclusive U.S. television partner of the British sensation.

The 30-year-old Breazeale (17-0, 15 KOs) has knocked out nearly 90 percent of his opponents since turning professional after representing the United States at the 2012 Olympics. Standing at 6-foot-7, the Los Angeles native is one inch taller than the 6-foot-6 Joshua. The former NCAA football quarterback is coming off a career-best victory of previously once-beaten Amir Mansour on Jan. 23.

Also on Saturday, June 25, Keith Thurman will defend his WBA Welterweight World Championship against former titlist Shawn Porter in a blockbuster matchup of two of the world’s best 147-pound fighters, live in Primetime on CBS at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT. In the co-main event of SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING on CBS, presented by Premier Boxing Champions, WBA Featherweight World Champion Jesus Cuellar will defend his title against former three-division world champion Abner Mares.

William Hill have signed a deal with Matchroom Sport to be the title sponsors of IBF World Heavyweight Champion Anthony Joshua’s next three fight nights’. The new agreement follows on from their sponsorship of AJ’s last two fights – against Dillian Whyte and his World title winning performance against Charles Martin.

Joshua (16-0-16 KO) defends his title for the first time at The O2 in London this Saturday when he faces the unbeaten American Dominic Breazeale. The Californian (17-0-15 KO) is no stranger to London having represented the USA in the 2012 Olympic Games, where Joshua won gold. Both fighters predicted an explosive knockout on ‘The Gloves Are Off’ preview on Sky Sports on Sunday night – and unsurprisingly the bookmakers agree. The sponsors are offering odds of 14/1 for both fighters to be knocked down at any stage of the fight.

The Joshua v Breazeale undercard features some other mouth-watering bouts – including the Super-Middleweight clash between Martin Murray and George Groves. Other big names on the undercard include Chris Eubank Junior, Dillian Whyte, Anthony Ogogo, Kal Yafai and Conor Benn.

The event will be watched by a 17,000 strong sell-out crowd at the O2 Arena in London, while millions more will tune in on Sky Sports Box Office in the UK, Showtime in the USA and via other associated broadcasters around the world.

Alex O’Shaughnessy, Chief Marketing Officer at William Hill said “We’re delighted to sign this new deal with Matchroom Sport. Anthony Joshua is one of the most talked about boxers of our generation and it’s exciting to align our brand to this true British sporting icon.”

Eddie Hearn, Managing Director at Matchroom Sport, said “AJ is one of the biggest draws in world boxing right now and it’s fantastic to have one of Britain’s biggest brands with us on his journey to greatness. We’ve built up a really strong working relationship with William Hill over the last year and I believe it will continue for many years to come.”

NEW YORK(June 20, 2016) – Undefeated IBF Heavyweight World Champion Anthony Joshua (16-0, 16 KOs) will make the first defense of his title against fellow unbeaten Dominic Breazeale (17-0, 15 KOs) of Upland, Calif., this Saturday, June 25 on SHOWTIME BOXING INTERNATIONAL® from The O2 in London, live on SHOWTIME® on at 5:15 p.m. ET/2:15 p.m. PT.

Just a few hours later in Primetime on CBS (9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT), Keith “One Time” Thurman will defend his WBA Welterweight World Title against former champ Shawn “Showtime” Porter in a welterweight blockbuster that headlines SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING on CBS, presented by Premier Boxing Champions.

Both Joshua and Breazeale participated in an international media conference call on Monday. Also taking part were Stephen Espinoza, Executive Vice President and General Manager of SHOWTIME Sports; Eddie Hearn, Managing Director of Matchroom Sport and Brittany Goossen-Brown of TGB Promotions introducing Breazeale.

Below are highlights of what the principals had to say on the conference call. A full transcript will be available in the coming days.

ANTHONY JOSHUA
Thoughts on his preparation for the fight:
“I feel great condition wise, and mentally I’m in a good place. I’ve never felt so relaxed because I just know I’m capable of doing it. I’ve trained weeks and years and it’s just about getting it right on the night of the fight. My tactics and my mind have not let me down so far, so that’s why I don’t want to change anything.

“I’m not putting too much pressure on myself. I’m going to attack the fight the same way I have my last 16 and put on an explosive show. That’s what the Americans love. They like knockouts and I won’t let them down.

“Every fight can be my last fight. As much as I would like to tell you I’m confident and ‘I’m going to do this, I’m going to do that’ I do understand I have to approach this as if it could be my last fight.

“I know he can hang around, he doesn’t go down easy. He’s a big guy, he can eat shots. The Dominic Breazeale I’m used to watching on YouTube and I’m reading about is the enhanced Dominic Breazeale – the Dominic Breazeale that is 50 percent better because I think he knows he wants to come prove himself on a global stage. And this is his chance come Saturday, so I need to prepare for the best of Breazeale.”

On going from being the hunter as a challenger to being the hunted as a champion:
“I’m not the cream of the crop in the gym. I’m around guys that are achieving things on the same level so I’m still hunting. I still have that mentality as if I’m a main killer in the jungle. I haven’t lost that hunger.

On potential to fight in the US in the future:
“I just keep on hearing the United States is where it’s happening. And if I come to the U.S., I’m going to shut it down.”

Thoughts on Breazeale’s performance against Amir Mansour:
“He’s a tough guy. He managed to go out there and break Mansour’s jaw and capture a win, which has led him into where he is now. Whichever angels were floating in the ring with him that day have led him to this point, so I’ve got to put an end to his dream.”

On winning a piece of the heavyweight championship in just his 16th pro fight:
“It didn’t mean much. I still have another couple titles I need to get my hands on. I’m still hunting. There’s still work to be done. So it only ticked one of the boxes on my to-do list.”

DOMINIC BREAZEALE
“I’m out here very excited. I can’t wait to get in the ring June 25 and shock the world, that’s for sure. I’ve been lucky enough to prepare for the biggest fight of my life and I’m really super excited about it.”

On why he thinks he was selected for this matchup:
“Honestly, the way I see it is that someone didn’t do their research. They didn’t look deep enough. They didn’t find out enough about me and maybe they’re looking at me as just another football player that transitioned into boxing. And I’m hoping they’re overlooking me. It definitely can be a situation where they’re just watching one fight, especially my last fight. But there’s been a lot of tough ones. If they’re looking at that one situation, I’m glad because that’s to my liking.”

On his feelings about fighting overseas:
“The way I’m thinking about it is, June 25, I gain 20,000 fans. I’m in a situation where I’m very confident going into this fight and I know for sure I’m going to put on a great show, come out victorious and go back to the U.S. with 20,000 UK fans.

“I definitely believe [Joshua] realizes; he understands that he’s got a big test in front of him. He’s got a big fighter in front of him. He’s got a guy that’s going to break him down, test his will and see if he is a true champion.

“I am coming into this fight very confident and I’ve got some things that I know are going to work for me, as well as some things that I plan on exploiting out of Joshua.

“I’m blessed to have been picked for this fight and am thankful for this opportunity. The way I look at it, and the way I look at every fight that I go into, is that as long as I do everything that I need to do in the gym as far as sparring, preparation and training, running my miles, sleeping right and eating right – I’ve crossed all of my T’s and dotted all of my I’s. I’ve got nothing to worry about. I’ve got nothing to second-guess. I’ve done everything I’m supposed to and I just can’t wait to shine.”

STEPHEN ESPINOZA, Executive Vice President and General Manager, SHOWTIME Sports

“Anthony quickly went from a diamond in the rough to really one of the foremost stars in the UK and Europe, and we are happy to be his partner as he establishes his presence in North America.

“We are particularly excited about this bout because we have, pardon the phraseology, two behemoths. There are two skilled boxers, really the epitome of what heavyweight boxing should be – big, strong athletes skilled in their sport, with amateur pedigree, meeting on the afternoon here in the US, evening in the UK to determine who is the best fighter.”

EDDIE HEARN, President, Matchroom Sport

“Over here, the feeling is that it’s going to be quite a routine defense, but Anthony hasn’t trained like that. He is not expecting that. He knows the background and roots of Dominic Breazeale. He knows his skill, and he knows how dangerous he can be and he knows how hungry he is as well. I think you’re going to get a different kind of fight than the Charles Martin fight. I think you’re going to get a guy that’s not afraid to let his hands go. He’s not going to wait and the sold out O2 Arena is going to be an electric place to be.”

“SHOWTIME is a deal we are very excited about. To link up with an American broadcaster for us was an obvious move, but it was a move we had to choose carefully. And I think we chose very, very well in SHOWTIME.”

BRITTANY GOOSSEN-BROWN, TGB Promotions

“Over here in the U.S. we have gotten to see Dominic grow before our eyes. We know he is definitely capable of challenging for the world title. On Saturday we expect him to be victorious and bring that back to America.”

For more information visit www.SHO.com/Sports, follow on Twitter @ShowtimeBoxing and @SHOSports, or become a fan on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/SHOBoxing and https://www.facebook.com/ShoSports

Also follow Dominic Breazeale on Twitter @TroubleBoxing, Anthony Joshua @AnthonyJoshua and use hashtag #JoshuaBreazeale to join the conversation.

Dominic Breazeale says that Anthony Joshua MBE has had it easy in his career so far but he’ll take him into deep waters when they clash for Joshua’s IBF World Heavyweight title at The O2 in London on Saturday June 25, live on Sky Sports Box Office.

Breazeale returns to London four years after he was Team USA’s Super-Heavyweight representative at the London 2012 Olympics. Joshua would go onto win gold that summer and become a British sporting hero in the process, and the Londoner has built on that momentum to move to 16-0 with 16 KO wins, the latest in April landing him the IBF crown he defends on Saturday.

Breazeale has not been swept away by the waves of support and attention that’s followed Joshua since the Olympics, as he believes he was gifted the gold medal. The 30 year old was far from impressed by the efforts of deposed IBF champ and fellow countryman Charles Martin in April, and ‘Trouble’ says he is in town to derail the Joshua journey.

“I plan on putting on some extreme pressure and taking Joshua to places he’s never been,” said Breazeale. “We’ll find out on Saturday night if he can handle it.

“I want him to feel uncomfortable at all given times of the fight, every second of every round. Yes, he’s got rid of a lot of his guys in the earlier rounds, he hasn’t been taken into deep waters. Do I want to see him go into uncharted territory? Of course, without a doubt.

“I’ve been there, I know what it feels like and I’ve done it several times now. At the same time, I’m not going to let an opportunity pass me. If I see something I can take in the first, second round I’m definitely going to get him out of there.

“I was sitting third row and I hands down believe that he lost that gold medal fight. But when you’ve got judges on your side, in your own country Olympics, it looks better when the home native wins.

“I think he’s had it easy so far, fighting in the Olympics in his backyard, having the judges there in his backyard. Even as a professional, he fought a guy in Charles Martin that really didn’t show up fight night. Charles himself had an easy road and path to the title with the whole slip and fall against Vyacheslav Glazkov.

“I think Joshua’s thinking of me as a stepping stone and he’s going to be sorry about that. He’s just wrong. He’s fighting a guy at 6ft7in, 255 pounds that brings the pressure and a great pace from round-to-round. I’m one of those guys that I might take a shot, I might work some defence or I might work a strong jab.

“Either way, I’m going to make it a fight. All of my opponents have been in deep trouble against me and I don’t think Joshua is going to come shy of that as well.

“I’m going in as the underdog, I’m going into an arena with 17,000 opposing fans. I’ve been picked as the smaller guy in the ring, by the IBF as a stepping stone and I feel like my back is against the wall. I’m going to come out fighting.”

Breazeale’s clash with Joshua tops a huge night of boxing at The O2 as George Groves and Martin Murray meet in an eliminator for the WBA World Super-Middleweight title.

Chris Eubank Jr defends his British Middleweight title against Welshman Tom Doran, John Wayne Hibbert clashes with Andrea Scarpa for the vacant WBC Silver Super-Lightweight title, Brixton Heavyweight Dillian Whyte returns to the fray, unbeaten Birmingham star Kal Yafai is in action, Olympic bronze medal man Anthony Ogogo continues his comeback from injury, Conor Benn fights for the third time in the paid ranks and there’s a debut for Team GB star Felix Cash.

LONDON (June 16, 2016) – Undefeated World Ranked Heavyweight Contender and 2012 U.S. Olympian Dominic “Trouble” Breazeale (17-0, 15 KOs) arrived at London Heathrow Airport on Thursday afternoon ahead of his world title challenge against IBF Heavyweight Champion Anthony Joshua (16-0, 16 KOs) on Saturday, June 25 on SHOWTIME BOXING INTERNATIONAL® from The O2 in London, live on SHOWTIME.

Confident as he’s been since the fight was announced, Breazeale was met by the local media upon his arrival.

“We’re two knockout artists so whoever lands first is going to win,” Breazeale said. “I know I got under his skin at the first press conference. He was rattled when we met and he knows I’m not some pushover like he’s had in the past.

“I am an opportunist and if I see an opportunity, I am going to take advantage of it. If he exposes something or shows a weakness of some sort, I plan to take advantage of it.

“I’ll go with the game plan, of course. My trainer, Manny Robles has done a great job developing a game plan during our training camp.

“I’ll hit him hard, hit him strong, hit him with everything, just be ready. We’ve had a great camp and it’s the most exciting part about camp is getting to the finish line and I am excited. I am ready to be victorious on June 25.”

For more information visit www.SHO.com/Sports, follow on Twitter @ShowtimeBoxing and @SHOSports, or become a fan on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/SHOBoxing and https://www.facebook.com/ShoSports

Also follow Dominic Breazeale on Twitter @TroubleBoxing, Anthony Joshua @AnthonyJoshua and use hashtag #JoshuaBreazeale to join the conversation.

Anthony Joshua MBE and Dominic Breazeale will weigh-in in Covent Garden on Friday June 24 ahead of their blockbuster showdown for Joshua’s IBF World Heavyweight title at The O2 in London on June 25, live on Sky Sports Box Office.

Joshua is preparing to defend his World title for the first time against the unbeaten American and they will hit the scales at 1pm on Friday along with the stacked undercard.

The scales will be set up in the iconic central hub of Covent Garden in front of the famous St Paul’s church, with fans urged to arrive early to grab the best spot.

The Covent Garden weigh-in completes a busy pre-fight schedule with a public work-out and free-entry fight night at York Hall on Tuesday June 22 where Joshua, Breazeale and undercard fighters including George Groves, Chris Eubank Jr, Dillian Whyte, Anthony Ogogo and Conor Benn will perform work-outs and as an added bonus English Lightweight champion Ohara Davies and talented Middleweight Craig Richards look to extend their unbeaten records in eight and four round bouts.

There are media-only press conferences on Wednesday and Thursday before the whole card heads to Covent Garden on the Friday for the weigh-in.

Unbeaten Londoners Ohara Davies and Craig Richards will box at York Hall in Bethnal Green on Tuesday June 21 as part of the free-entry public work-out ahead of Anthony Joshua’s IBF World Heavyweight title defence against Dominic Breazeale at The O2 on Saturday June 25, live on Sky Sports Box Office.

Davies landed the English Lightweight title in Greenwich in April when he stopped Andy Keates in four rounds on the undercard of Joshua’s World title win over Charles Martin at The O2.

Davies will be looking to move into double figures for stoppage wins in his 12th pro outing, with the Hackney man already on a run of five stoppage wins as the 24 year old continues to cause waves in the 135lbs division.

Richards boxes for the fourth time in the paid ranks and the Crystal Palace Middleweight has impressed in his first year in the pros and fights at the famous east London venue for the third time.

Davies and Richards’ fights are added to an action-packed night at York Hall where Joshua and Breazeale perform public workouts alongside stars on the undercard including George Groves, Chris Eubank Jr, Dillian Whyte, Anthony Ogogo and Conor Benn.

Doors will open at 4.30pm with the action getting underway at 5pm – entry is free and first-come, first-served.

LOS ANGELES (June 8, 2016) – Undefeated World Ranked Heavyweight Contender and 2012 U.S. Olympian Dominic “Trouble” Breazeale (17-0, 15 KOs) participated in an open media workout at Crossroads Boxing Gym in Ontario, Calif., on Tuesday afternoon ahead of his world title challenge against IBF Heavyweight Champion Anthony Joshua (16-0, 16KOs) on Saturday, June 25 on SHOWTIME BOXING INTERNATIONAL® from The O2 in London, live on SHOWTIME.

Joining Breazeale at the media workout was his trainer Manny Robles.

DOMINIC BREAZEALE

On the passing of Muhammed Ali…

“Muhammed Ali was a huge inspiration. Heavy hearts when great ones pass away like that. He was a wonderful man. I never had the opportunity to meet him, but I did meet some of his kids, Layla Ali being one of them.

“Ali was a very inspirational type of individual. You go back and watch some of his fights; I was way too young to see him fight in his prime but I’ve seen the recordings and seen the video footage. Everyone says he did everything wrong but everything right. It’s just phenomenal.

“One of the things I was able to take from watching him fight was his jab. Sometimes he’d beat guys hands down with just his jab.”

On AIBA’s position on pros to fight in Olympics…

“I think it’s a good thing and a bad thing. AIBA’s doing a good job bringing the councils together and generating a new buzz for the sport. It might be a little too late for some of the professional fighters to get themselves together to compete for their country. I like the fact that they’re taking the head gear off because that’s the next step after the Olympics. You go into the pros and there’s not going to be any more padded gloves or head gear that you’re wearing so that’s a good thing. As far as the pros, I don’t see any successful pros joining and entering into an amateur competition, but for those that didn’t get a chance to compete in the Olympics they might.”

On competing in the Olympics…
“I have definitely considered it. But I’ve got a fight coming up.

On his opponent Anthony Joshua…

“I think, in general, he’s kind of had a little bit of a stepping stone as far as fighting in the Olympics in his backyard, having the judges there in his backyard. I don’t know if you saw the fight but when he fought in that final match for the Gold Medal, I was sitting third row and I hands down believe that (he lost). But you know, when you’ve got judges on your side, in your own country, Olympics in your own country, it looks better when the home native wins.

“Even as a professional, he fought a guy in Charles Martin that really didn’t show up fight night. Charles Martin himself had an easy road and path to the title with the whole slip and fall against Glazkov. When you think of a heavyweight champion you want to make sure he’s fought the best, and I think that’s why Joshua has chosen me as his opponent to defend against. That’s what he plans on getting out of the situation if he can make it through the 12 rounds. I plan on putting on some extreme pressure and taking Joshua to a new level of boxing, and we’ll find out June 25.”

On what it means to get a shot at a title…

“I think Joshua’s thinking of me as a stepping stone and he’s going to be sorry about that. He’s just wrong. I mean, he’s fighting a guy at 6-foot-7, 255 pounds that brings the pressure and a great pace from round-to-round. I’m one of those guys that I might take a shot, I might work some defense, I might work a strong jab.

“Either way, I’m going to make it a fight. All of my opponents have been down on the canvas and I don’t think Joshua is going to come shy of that as well.

“I’m going in as the underdog, I’m going into an arena with 20,000 opposing fans. I’ve been picked as the smaller guy in the ring, by the IBF as a stepping stone and I feel like my back is against the wall. I’m going to come out fighting.”

On what it would mean to bring the title home to the U.S…

“To go over and win in London the IBF title is a major stepping stone I plan on achieving, and then I plan on continuing to go after all the titles.

“My mindset has definitely changed. This is an opportunity I have been working for the last eight years. I dabbled around in boxing young as a 23-year-old, and here I am at 30 getting ready to turn 31 and it’s progressively getting better and better, day after day, camp after camp, fight after fight. The situation that I’m in now mentally is just different compared to some of my fights in the past. My confidence level is through the roof. And physique-wise I feel great.”

On what it would mean to become champion…

“It’s everything wrapped into one. It’s definitely one of those stepping stones. I’m not just going to be settled winning the IBF title. Right now that’s the mission at-hand and the goal to accomplish, but to become champion is everything. All those hard days, those times you want to run get up early in the morning or run Mt. Baldy Saturday afternoon when everyone else is sleeping in. It’ll all pay off that night when my hand’s raised.”

On how he will approach dealing with Joshua in the early rounds of the fight…

“I want him to feel uncomfortable at all given times of the fight, every second of every round. Yes, he’s got rid of a lot of his guys in the earlier rounds, he hasn’t into deep waters. Do I want to see him go into uncharted territory? Of course, without a doubt. I’ve been there, I know what it feels like and I’ve done it several times now. At the same time, I’m not going to let an opportunity pass me. If I see something I can take in the first, second round I’m definitely going to get him out of there.”

On winning his fight over Amir Mansour after getting knocked down …

“It’s just another confidence booster. It’s one thing to finish a guy in the first round with three punches or something like that. It’s another thing to finish a guy in the sixth, seventh round with a combination of shots and finally you come out of an experienced fight with a guy like Amir Mansour where he puts you down on the canvas in the second and you’re thinking to yourself ‘damn what did I get myself in to?’ and you come back, battle back and you end up breaking the man’s jaw.

“”Whether people are going to say, ‘Amir was going to beat you, he was ahead on the cards,’ then again he’s got a broken jaw and he’ll probably never fight again. It’s one of those things. I can go to bed at night thinking to myself, you know what, that’s another mission accomplished, another stepping stone, let’s move on to the next one.

“It gives me something to work on. I know I’ve been down on the canvas, I know I was able to come back and be very successful from it. Anytime you get a win of that matter where you get a guy, break him down, break him down where he quits on the stool it’s a huge confidence booster. It makes you understand as an athlete or as a professional boxer that you’ve got punching power, you just broke another man’s jaw.”

On fighting in the UK…

“For me, I think my football background is going to come in hand when fighting on the road in London. Anytime you get on the football field and you play quarterback, let’s say you’re down by 20-30 points and all the fans are booing, throwing popcorn at you, there’s nothing that you can teach a man or an individual to gear up for a situation like that. But I’ve been there, done that. Fighting in front of 20,000 fans will be nothing new for me.”

On if he’d like to unify…

“Oh yeah, without a doubt. That’s the overall plan and goal. Everyone keeps telling me fight it round after round, match after match, and at this point I’m fighting it title after title. So I’m going to get this title and turn around in the next couple of weeks and announce hopefully another title defense and unify a couple different times. That would be great.”

On the difference in the current popularity of the heavyweight division from past years…

“I think the heavyweight division is getting ready to change. With individuals like myself, Deontay Wilder, Tyson Fury, we have guys who are characters who bring a lot of charisma to the division. That’s something that we need. Yes, we are athletes but in the end we are entertainers and we want to see a show. I’m the type of guy that brings a show every single time I fight. It’s action-packed from the opening bell to the end, and fight fans are looking for that. And that’s what is going to resurrect the heavyweight division.”

What it means to go back and fight in the UK…

“It means a lot to get a chance to fight in the UK again. I get a chance to put closure on a door that’s still open. To go there and fight in the 2012 Olympics and come out with one loss; a lot of hard work was put into preparing for my amateur competition.

“Then again I do understand and believe I’m a completely different fighter — not only am I a professional but I no longer fight an amateur style. I would consider myself a knockout artist with some pretty good punching power and that’s what I plan on showing the UK fans and my U.S. following. It’s a chapter that needs to be closed and I plan on doing that.’’

On how much it means to him to fight for the title…

“I think it’s going to beautiful. It’s going to be great to go back to where my amateur career ended and beat the guy who won the gold medal. That’s going to be great. And then, on top of that, take away more hardware with the IBF heavyweight title. You couldn’t ask for anything better. That’s why I keep saying that it’s a blessing in disguise. It would be different if I was just fighting a typical heavyweight who just recently won the belt and is defending it but I’m fighting the heavyweight champ as well as a gold medalist.”

On fighting someone of Joshua’s size and if poses any complications…

“I’ve sparred guys that are bigger than me, I’ve sparred some guys smaller than me. I’ve fought some guys that have all been smaller than me. I’ve been the tallest thus far, but I don’t think the difference in a matter of inches is going to make that big of a difference. The guys I’m sparring with now are 10 times better than Anthony Joshua himself.

“I think that it’s going to be one of those situations that it is not going to be a difference of size or weight. It’s going to be the difference of skill and experience.”

On where he sees the heavyweight division going in the next three years…

“I believe that we’ve got a lot of heavyweights who are doing real well and are real successful in their situations, some being titleholders, some not. But I think it’s going to be a revolving circle. Me fighting Anthony Joshua, then going on to Deontay Wilder and Fury, Klitschko might even hang around for a while. Will it ever be compared to the Ali days or Riddick Bowe and the Holyfield days? I don’t know. Riddick Bowe and Holyfield had one great trilogy and I study it all the time. So it all depends on how much each fighter has left in him.”

On what it would mean to him to be a part of that next generation of greats…
“I’m already part of it. I’m already blossoming in to the situation. It’s a dream come true. It’s what you work your tail off for every day in the gym as well as on the road with strength and conditioning. It’s why you skip out on birthdays and holidays.”

On the altercation between him and Joshua at the London press conference…

“You know, Anthony Joshua came out there with the expectations of getting a little more of a warm or respectful welcoming. I was respectful; I stuck my hand out there and shook the man’s hand. They asked us to face off and we faced off and exchanged some words. I said my opinion and he didn’t like that, but that’s his problem. Like I told him, come fight night you can express yourself all you want. On June 25 bring your mouthpiece and gloves and it all happens in the square.”

MANNY ROBLES

“It’s been a great camp, we really started weeks before we got the call for the fight. Dominic took off about a month after the Mansour fight and then we got right back to work.

“He’s going to be much lighter for this fight than he was for Mansour, his conditioning is much better.”

“We leave on June 15 to get acclimated but he’ll be ready to go on June 25 and to be victorious.”

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