Wladimir Klitschko boxing news
Soon after 10pm in London on Saturday night, Anthony Joshua will meet Wladimir Klitschko in an incredibly interesting heavyweight match up to contest the IBF world title that is held by the former and the WBA and IBO belts which are vacant.
But forget draining the alphabet soup of titles for this one, because the real fascination in the clash between these two former Olympians is in the questions that only Wembley Stadium can answer on 29th April.
William Hill, sponsor of Anthony Joshua v Wladimir Klitschko, is predicting the global betting industry turnover could reach £100 million (£20 million in the UK alone) for Saturday’s eagerly awaited world heavyweight showdown.
British sporting icon and current IBF world champion Joshua is the 4/9 favourite to win the fight – and in the process add the vacant WBA and IBO titles to his collection. AJ, who won Olympic gold at London 2012, has enjoyed a perfect start to his professional career with 18 wins from 18 fight – all coming by way of knockout. Unsurprisingly, William Hill are offering short odds of 8/13 for the Londoner to knockout Kitschko at Wembley Stadium.
https://youtu.be/YZ-Z5fWOL-A
Official Weights from London:
Anthony Joshua: 250.1 lbs.
Wladimir Klitschko: 240.5 lbs.
The heavyweight world championship bout between undefeated champion Anthony Joshua and long-reigning kingpin Wladimir Klitschko is the most significant heavyweight fight in more than a decade. SHOWTIME will televise live at 4:15 p.m. ET/1:15 p.m. PT from sold-out Wembley Stadium in London.
Anthony Joshua and Wladimir Klitschko came face-to-face on Thursday at the sprawling Sky Headquarters in London as the two 6-foot-6 giants participated in a final press conference for Saturday’s blockbuster heavyweight world championship event.
SHOWTIME will televise the fight LIVE at 4:15 p.m. ET/1:15 p.m. PT from sold-out Wembley Stadium where a record-setting 90,000 fans are expected to be in attendance.
Is former long-reigning heavyweight champ Wladimir Klitschko one fight away from retirement or is the 41 year old one fight and one win away from becoming a three-time king with a rejuvenated career?
There is simply everything on the line for Klitschko this Saturday night in London as he challenges IBF ruler Anthony Joshua (the WBA heavyweight belt to also be at stake) and perhaps this is why Wladimir is calling the fight his “biggest challenge.” Klitschko, 64-4(53) has faced some big hurdles throughout his long career (he seriously considered calling it a day after Lamon Brewster shocked him in that quite bizarre fight back in 2004) and he has beaten some quality fighters – does Klitschko really feel Joshua, an unproven quantity in many departments, is the biggest challenge of his career?
Klitschko Vs Joshua – A Few Thoughts.
There has been a lot written and said about the upcoming Anthony Joshua Vs Wladimir Klitschko fight. Some have said this is a “passing of the torch” fight, others that Joshua will finally become the name he should be, some have even suggested that this is when Klitschko cements his ATG status.
The ringwalks for Saturday’s Anthony Joshua vs. Wladimir Klitschko heavyweight blockbuster event are set for 4:35 p.m. ET/1:35 p.m. PT with the first bell scheduled for 5 p.m. ET/2 p.m. PT from Wembley Stadium in London.
SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING pre-fight coverage begins LIVE on SHOWTIME at 4:15 p.m. ET/1:15 p.m. PT with interviews with Joshua and Klitschko, exclusive, in-depth features and live coverage of the grand pre-fight pageantry at Britain’s largest stadium. National anthem performers and musical guests will be announced later this week.
American Heavyweight World Champion Deontay Wilder hosted a media conference call to give his thoughts on Saturday’s heavyweight blockbuster between undefeated IBF Champion Anthony Joshua and long-reigning kingpin Wladimir Klitschko live on SHOWTIME® (4:15 p.m. ET/1:15 p.m. PT) from sold-out Wembley Stadium in London.
Wilder (38-0, 37 KOs), who won his WBC belt in January 2015 on SHOWTIME and has since made five defenses, will serve as an analyst for Sky Sports Box Office for Joshua vs. Klitschko.
The officials have been confirmed for this Saturday’s huge, 90,000 sell-out heavyweight collision between Anthony Joshua and Wladimir Klitschko. There is plenty on the line in this fight – the biggest heavyweight fight in British boxing history – and a strong third man in the ring will be needed.
The fight will have a very experienced referee in David Fields of New Jersey. Having worked over 200 fights – including bouts with big names such as Bernard Hopkins, Sergey Kovalev, Shawn Porter and Yuriorkis Gamboa to name just a few – Fields, a big guy, should not be at all out of his depth working the WBA/IBF heavyweight title fight; even if he has not worked too many heavyweight fights before.
There really could be quite a throng of heavyweight greatness, either past, present or future, at Wembley on April 29 (a week today as if any heavyweight fan needed reminding!). Wladimir Klitschko, himself a future Hall of Famer, will of course fight Anthony Joshua, the next heavyweight great in the opinion of quite a few people, and two WBC heavyweight rulers, one past one current, have confirmed their attendance.
Deontay Wilder will be there, scouting his possible next opponent, and Vitali Klitschko – for some people the superior fighting Klitschko brother – will also be in the house, assisting his younger brother. Vitali, taking a break from his political duties in Kyiv, will be close to his brother as “Dr. Steel Hammer” attempts to take both the IBF and the WBA belts next week.