Commentator Ade Oladipo wants Anthony Joshua to retire if he won’t fight Daniel Dubois in a rematch. Ade points out the 35-year-old Joshua (28-4, 25 KOs) has “half a billion in the bank,” and he wants to see him retire with his “faculties intact.”
Joshua was brutally knocked out in the fifth round by IBF heavyweight champion Dubois on September 21st at Wembley Stadium in London. Except for a brief moment of success for Joshua in the fifth, he was bludgeoned by the young lion Dubois (22-2, 21 KOs)
It’s believed that Joshua is sticking around so he can fight Tyson Fury two to three times and make even more generational money. After those two to three fights are done, Joshua could face Oleksandr Usyk in a trilogy match to see if he can avenge one of his two past defeats against him.
Joshua claims that he likes fighting, and he obviously enjoys the money he’s getting for these fights. It’s unclear if Joshua’s goal is to become the first billionaire in the history of boxing. Given AJ’s popularity and the way that British fans don’t give up on their heroes when their careers sink, he has a good shot at becoming a billionaire.
It might require that his promoter, Eddie Hearn, matches him carefully, but you can argue fighting Tyson Fury would be him doing that. Fury lacks power, and his punch resistance is 100% gone at 36 after his three battles against Deontay Wilder. Joshua would have an excellent chance of destroying Fury in two or three rounds if he jumps on him from the get-go like he did against Francis Ngannou.
He had won his four previous contests before losing to Dubois, but those were against fighters that his promoter, Eddie Hearn, had matched him up with to rebuild him after his two defeats against Usyk.
“Nobody. No, I want him to retire. I’ve been honest. I’m not going to change my tune on it,” said Ade Oladipo to Pro Boxing Fans when asked who should Anthony Joshua fight next. “Not because I don’t think AJ can compete with the other heavyweights. You can put AJ in there, but I just feel what’s the want.”
If Joshua were to fight Dubois again next and get knocked out, he might consider retirement. However, given that the rematch isn’t happening next, there’s no chance that Joshua will hang up his gloves.
“If it’s not going to be the Dubois rematch,” said Ade about wanting Joshua to retire if ihe’s not fighting Dubois again. “If Fury beats Usyk, does AJ fight Fury? I don’t know. The Fury fight is so big financially. I can understand why they want it. But for me, as an AJ friend, I’d like to see him walk off into the sunset with all faculties [intact]. What has he got, half a billion in the bank? It’s not a bad run.”
I think Joshua wants the Fury fight, and he also wants to give the fans and His Excellency Turki Alalshikh that match. A lot of people want to see Joshua stay around to fight Fury, and he doesn’t want to let them down.
“Why does everyone want it to continue, continue, and continue in what it’s such a dangerous sport? If it’s not Dubois, for me, I think it should be retirement, but that’s just me,” said Ade.
Boxing fans want Joshua to continue because he brings drama to his fights. He has a Wladimir Klitschko element to his fights, where you don’t know if he will knock out his opponent or get knocked out himself. He had been looking good until he fought Dubois, and that was a case of the wrong opponent and a game plan that took away his best assets.
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