London’s o2 arena is reserved on Jan. 31 by Eddie Hearn‘s Matchroom Boxing promotions with a typical British card featuring a lot of the UK’s best up and coming talent. The big attention getter on the card is the Heavyweight fight between undefeated British sensation Anthony Joshua (10-0) and veteran Kevin Johnson (29-6).
Johnson is a tested veteran who has been in the rings with the likes of Vitali Klitschko, Manuel Charr, Tyson Fury and Dereck Chisora. He is a sturdy fighter who has never been down before, and his (29-6-1) record overall has seen him go the distance in his losses.
For Joshua, who is the next big thing in British boxing, ring time is necessary as his 10-0 record has filled just 17 total rounds. Joshua is really in a no-lose situation in this fight in terms of his stock. At the end of the day, Johnson has losses on his resume to Christian Hammer and Tor Hamer, neither of whom is a world beater.
If Joshua is forced to log some rounds against Johnson, then so be it, it is time to see what he has in terms of managing a longer fight and in terms of conditioning. If Joshua comes in and wipes out Johnson, it would send a message in terms of where he is and what his potential is. Tyson Fury, who likes talking knockouts, went the distance with him. Also, all-world Vitali Klitschko, who retired with 45 wins and 41 KOs, was forced to go the distance by Johnson.
Joshua is already booked for a return match on April 4. This bout is for a WBC International title, and he still has some British and European titles he wants to target in 2015, and there are rumblings among British Heavyweights who want to test Anthony. His last outing, against veteran Michael Sprott was seen as a challenge for Anthony, but Anthony blitzed him. Veteran David Price has called him out, and as a former British and Commonwealth champion, Price is a live body and a real challenge for Joshua.
How committed are Ed Hearn and Matchroom Boxing to each other? Take a look at Joshua and Matchroom Boxing’s press conference announcing his professional debut:
