The waiting game for Antony Joshua’s next move continues, yet Oleksandr Usyk’s co-promoter is confident Usyk will still fight Joshua sometime in 2020.
Whether Joshua will relinquish any of his heavyweight belts or show up at Tyson Fury’s training camp as a sparring partner for the Fury-Deontay Wilder rematch is still anybody’s guess. But Alexander Krassyuk says that at some point during the next 12 months Joshua will fight Usyk.
“This is a fact,’’ Krassyuk told Sky Sports. “The question is whether it happens in the next fight or the other. At this stage, we wait for AJ’s decision.’’
Joshua might opt to fight Kubrat Pulev in a mandatory title defense sometime this spring. There are reports that Joshua and Pulev have until Jan. 31 to strike a deal.
If they reach an agreement and Joshua loses his WBO belt as a result, Krassyuk said Usyk will probably fight Joseph Parker instead of Derek Chisora for the vacant title.
“Chisora is impossible for the title,” Krassyuk said. “In case it turns out that the WBO title is vacant, Usyk will be happy to fight for it. And Joseph Parker is the highest available contender.’’