Anthony Joshua has reiterated plans to fight Andy Ruiz Jr. for a third time as well as revealing an offer to spar Tyson Fury in Las Vegas.
As WBN exclusively confirmed this week, Fury is heading to the world-famous ‘Sin City’ playground to prepare with SugarHill Steward next month.
Joshua has now reached out to his British rival with an offer to help Fury defeat Deontay Wilder on February 22nd.
Fury previously drew with Wilder in December 2018. Joshua told Sky Sports News: “I think honestly he might beat Wilder next time.
“I think Fury would fight me quicker than Wilder would, so, if that’s the case, I want him to win. Imagine that fight on British soil.
“If Tyson needs me, I’ll go out and spar with him (in Las Vegas) to get him ready for Wilder.”
On why a fight with Wilder hasn’t happened yet, Joshua added: “It still puzzles me as to why it’s so difficult to pin this man down.
“This is the man I need to pin down to get the last ring and conquer this division.
“When he’s ready, as I am, I would love to be here talking about Deontay Wilder and the keys to victory.
“It’s not about me, it’s about the sport and the legacy. If he wants to create his legacy and he wants to be a future hall of famer, he needs to come and see us.
“You’ve got the two lords of the rings here. The last one to unify, undisputed, the division. I’ve got four, he’s got one. I just need one more.”
As Wilder explained to WBN at the time (summer 2018), Joshua negated on several points in the contract before eventually pushing through with a mandatory against Alexander Povetkin.
Wilder had accepted a $15 million paycheck despite initially offering Joshua $100m to go to the States.
On the verge of reluctantly accepting a deal that didn’t address two key points, promoter Eddie Hearn then turned away to Povetkin.
MANDATORIES
Despite calling on Wilder to fight again this week, Joshua is expected to fight two further stipulations.
Kubrat Pulev and Oleksandr Usyk are lined up with the IBF and WBO, leaving Wilder to crack on with long-settled plans to face Fury two more times.
Commenting on his next two outings, AJ gave his assessment of the pair.
Pulev is a very tough athlete,” continued Joshua in the Sky Sports News interview. “He knows what he’s doing and anyone fighting for the championship is a dangerous fighter.
“My mindset? Seek and destroy.
“Usyk is a great cruiserweight has moved up to be in with the big boys. He will be in my sights for around March or April, and he’s a very credible opponent.
“I want fighters like him on my record. I’ve been studying him already.”
Concluding the chat, Joshua then stated a third fight with Andy Ruiz will definitely happen in the future.
“One trillion percent,” he said. “I always said I’d fight him in Tijuana, with his uncle as referee. Me and Andy will soon see each other in the ring again.”
