Anthony Joshua rolled back the years to secure a fifth-round stoppage victory over Otto Wallin on Saturday night, December 23 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The British Nigerian boxer came flying from the first minute was not afraid to let his hands go, drawing blood from Wallin’s nose before unleashing a seroes of powerful shots in the fifth round. The fight was brought to a halt before the sixth round could begin as Joshua wrapped up 2023 in style by cruising to a one-sided victory.
The result appeared to wreck any hopes of a blockbuster meeting between Joshua and Deontay Wilder, who looked rusty and was simply not good enough to avoid being shown up by Parker over 12 rounds.
Anthony Joshua said in his post-fight interview that he would still be open to facing Deontay Wilder in spite of the Bronze Bomber’s disappointing loss to Joseph Parker.
“Deontay, everything he said about me, I could rip him apart right now,” says Joshua.
“But I’m gonna take the higher ground and say I hope he comes back. I’m sure everyone still wants to see that fight, right? Or do they want to see me fight?”
Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn adds: “This Anthony Joshua is the best heavyweight in the world. With this mindset he is unbeatable