Bob Arum Calls For Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder To Box Each Other

Bob Arum believes Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder are no longer contenders and should box each other instead.

Joshua is coming off a KO loss to Daniel Dubois which was a stunning upset, while Wilder was knocked out by Zhilei Zhang last time out. Since then, Wilder has talked about retirement, and Arum thinks both are done.

“No, you don’t have an off night getting out of you that way,” said Arum to Fight Hub TV (via BoxingScene). “I just think AJ has been through a lot of wars. I think it’s over for him as well as over for [Deontay] Wilder.”

With Arum thinking Joshua and Wilder are done, he thinks the two should box each other.

“Maybe they can fight each other,” Arum said, “that’d be good.”

Despite their losses, Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder are still two of the biggest names in the sport and a bout against each other would be massive. It’s also a fight fans have wanted to see for quite some time, but it hasn’t come to fruition yet.

Although Bob Arum thinks Anthony Joshua is done, the veteran said he isn’t done in his statement after the loss.

“But you know what the problem is? Is that it’s far from over yet. We’ve done it once, we’ve done it twice. Doing it a third time hasn’t been easy, but I believe it’s something I can achieve. It’s about making the right steps forward, working hard, and proving, and it’s got to come from here [taps chest] more than anything. It can’t come from any external voices or influences, it’s got to come from here, and it’s only been a day, but when I sit back and I’m thinking, I know I’ve got a lot of this. I know I’ve got a lot of this,” Joshua said in a statement.

Anthony Joshua is 28-4 as a pro and had his four-fight winning streak snapped last time out. Deontay Wilder, meanwhile, is 43-4-1 and is 1-4 in his last five fights.