ANTHONY JOSHUA’s path to becoming a three-time heavyweight champion has become a little bit clearer.
The former two-time unified heavyweight king got his career back on track last year
with consecutive wins over Jermaine Franklin, Robert Helenius and Otto Wallin.
And he could soon get his hands back on the belt he first claimed eight years ago.
That’s because the winner of Tyson Fury’s eagerly-undisputed heavyweight title fight with Oleksandr Usyk will be STRIPPED of the IBF title shortly after next month’s Saudi showdown.
Croatian clubber Filip Hrgovic is currently the mandatory challenger for the belt and will make up one-half of the fight for the vacant title.
And Joshua will make up the other half as he’s currently the No.3 ranked heavyweight in the IBF’s rankings.
Swedish slugger Wallin was ranked at No.2 prior to losing his clash with AJ last month but has slipped to ninth in the list after his fifth-round TKO loss.
That No.2 position, however, is now vacant – meaning Hrgovic will be ordered to face the third-ranked heavyweight should the IBF indeed strip the winner of Fury vs Usyk.
And currently sitting in the No.3 slot is the golden boy of British boxing Joshua, who is still nursing the pain of Deontay Wilder blowing their £100million two-fight deal.
All signs appear to point to a title tilt for AJ later this year, although the IBF sanctioning a new eliminator to fill the No.2 spot could scupper that.
Joshua, 34, is set to return to the ring in March for a crossover clash with former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou.
Ngannou shocked the world with his display against Fury last October, cutting and dropping The Gypsy King in a narrow split decision defeat.
And he’s planning to turn in a similarly stunning performance in his Riyadh rumble with AJ.
During an appearance on The MMA Hour, The Predator said: “If AJ takes the punch that Fury took, I don’t guarantee that he’s standing up.
“I’ve heard that he doesn’t have a chin. I’m going to find out.”
Responding to Eddie Hearn’s claim that he’ll be ‘easy work’ for AJ, Ngannou said: “Eddie is a promoter, that’s a routine for him.
“He says the same thing all the time, just not about Francis Ngannou but somebody else.
“That’s just what he does. The date is set.
“It’s two months from now, and if any of them think they’re going to have easy money, that’s too bad for them.”
