Boxing: Tyson Fury Wants To Fight Anthony Joshua In Nigeria

British boxer, Tyson Fury, says he wishes to fight Anthony Joshua in Nigeria.

The self-titled ‘Gypsy King’ said this in a chat with iFilmTV.

Fury said, “It may not be at Wembley, the fight might be in Nigeria in Lagos. I’ve heard they’ve got a 180,000-seater there.

“So considering I’m the ‘Nigerian Nightmare’ now then we’ll go over there.

“Or it could be in Ireland at Croke Park, that holds a lot of people or it could be at Wembley, you never know.”

Fury has hinted a September return to the ring for a shot at the IBO, IBF and WBO heavyweight belts.

On Joshua’s win over Wladimir Klitschko, Fury said it was “exciting for a boxing fan, but not so good for an actual boxer taking lots of punishment getting bounced off the canvas”.

“It was good for me because he got the best result, he got a lot of mileage out on the clock and got the win to save my money in the bank.

“He got exposed a bit too, everyone knows he’s not irresistible now because he can be sparkled.

“Klitschko let him off the hook and started boxing – I don’t know what he was doing.

“AJ never threw a punch for three rounds and was wobbling on his feet and Klitschko was just looking at him (like) ‘Shall I knock him out or not’?”

By Ifreke Inyang

Fury Ready To Fight Joshua

Tyson Fury on Sunday accepted the challenge issued by world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua following the Londoner’s title victory over Wladimir Klitschko.

Joshua, who stopped the Ukrainian in the 11th round at Wembley on Saturday, immediately called out fellow Briton Fury, who beat Klitschko on points in November 2015.

“Fury, where you at, baby?” he asked.

“I know he’s been talking, I want to give 90,000 a chance to see us.”

Fury, who has not fought since beating Klitschko, replied: “Let’s dance.”

Joshua is now unbeaten in 19 fights, with all his victories coming inside the distance. The 27-year-old’s win in front of a post-war British record 90,000 fans at the national stadium added the WBA belt to his IBF strap.

Fury, 28, is also unbeaten as a professional, with 18 knockouts in 25 fights, but surrendered his world heavyweight titles in an effort to focus on his mental health problems and is currently without a boxing licence and out of condition.

However, he remains active on social media and indicated he wants to return, judging by his reply on Twitter to Joshua’s calls from the ring.

“Challenge accepted,” Fury wrote. “We will give the world the biggest fight in 500 years. I will play with you. You are a boxer’s dream.

“Well done Anthony Joshua. Good fight. You had life and death with Klitschko and I played with the guy. Let’s dance.”

NAN

Boxing Champion, Anthony Joshua Was Rejected by Nigerian Boxing Officials Nine years ago

Jeremiah Okorodudu, a former boxing champion, has revealed how boxing rave of the moment, Anthony Joshua, was rejected by Nigerian boxing officials nine years ago.

Joshua caught global attention and became a darling of boxing fans Saturday night after he humiliated Wladimir Klitschko, at the Wembley Stadium in England.

Speaking with UK Sun, Okorodud recalled that nine years back, Joshua’s efforts to represent Nigeria at the 2008 Olympic Games were futile as the Nigerian boxing officials turned him down.

He said, “Joshua was in Nigeria once to connect with his roots and I think that was in 2007.

“He wanted a chance to compete for trials ahead of the 2008 Beijing Olympics qualifiers, but he was denied and not given a chance.

“Disappointed, he went back to England to represent Great Britain.

“He went on to win a gold that could have been a first for Nigeria at the Olympics.

“If only they had allowed him to compete for Nigeria, that gold would have been a Nigerian gold and not Great Britain’s.”

Another Nigeria coach at the time, Adegboyega Adeniji-Adele also confirmed the fact that Joshua was at the Nigerian camp.

“Oluwafemi Olaseni Joshua is his name and his family come from Ogun state in Nigeria,” he told the newspaper.

“When he visited, his intention was to represent Nigeria at the Olympics but he was denied in the trials. He had no other option than to go to Britain.

“It’s Nigeria’s loss, Britain’s gain. Personally, I feel sad that they let him go and those people should be made to explain why it was impossible to give him a chance.”

However, Obisia Nwakpa, who was the chief coach of the boxing team in 2008, defended the decision of not taking Joshua to the Olympics.

“We made the right call then, because he wasn’t good enough and we picked someone who was much better,” he was quoted as saying.

By Ameh Comrade Godwin