Joshua

[Bard of Boxrec]

Kingpin next up is the right fight. Gatekeeper extraordinaire, probably going to be fodder for Steve Caxton down the line too. But there'll be no linear progression after Johnson, just a lot of treading water before Joshua lines up foes like Browne and whoever else wants to step up to the plate. In three years we should have a situation where Joshua and Parker will converge for all the spoils, with Wilder somewhere in the mix too.

[Bodyshot3]

Kingpin next up is the right fight. Gatekeeper extraordinaire, probably going to be fodder for Steve Caxton down the line too. But there'll be no linear progression after Johnson, just a lot of treading water before Joshua lines up foes like Browne and whoever else wants to step up to the plate. In three years we should have a situation where Joshua and Parker will converge for all the spoils, with Wilder somewhere in the mix too

.

Parker certainly seems to be the other guy out there, coming through fast like AJ and with the tools to be very exciting indeed. Seen some of his stuff on-line and the guy is quick, athletic and most definitely does not mess about when he gets someone going. I also could see a scenario where AJ, Parker and Wilder (perhaps with Fury as well) are giving us some great title fights in 2-3 years time.

Browne v AJ would be fun as well, I'd like to see that maybe in 6 months time....that would get the Commonwealth title talked about again.

[tedley]

When Sky show you Joshua entering the arena without a big self satisfied smile on his face , then maybe you could be in for a reasonable fight.
At the moment Hearn is taking the piss.

[moogie101]

Its easy as fans to dismiss what they are doing, but Joshua seems to be coming along nicely, he's still a young lad & so they've got the time to build him slowly.

I've got no issue with the level of opposition he is facing at this stage of his career, I only take exception that these fights are being portrayed as main events on already watered down cards. If this was a co-main with a decent main event it wouldn't appear so bad to fans, but watching Joshua spark another overmatched foe hardly screams quality main event

[Batley18]

I don't have an issue with the Johnson fight next, but I hope that is a step towards bigger and better things. I want to see the likes of Charr, Price, Chisora. I think he would dismantle Stiverne, and would be a huge move for Joshua.

[UrbanFox]

I have noticed something different last week though: Aj seemed annoyed during interviews, especially the post fight ones.
He even requested a fight on 8th May card. If you look on IFL tv, he starts swearing, getting p** off with Eddie Hearn interfering during the conversation, repeating himself etc...
Clearly, you can sense there's some frustration here. Progression has been altered by injury and he is now being called out by the likes of Tony Thompson on Facebook (on top of Whyte, Fury etc...).
The opponent that Matchroom will name after Johnson will be crucial for AJ: Should it be a domestic fighter or a highly-ranked seasoned pro? Are we witnessing a new David Price?

[Emmseegee]

I dont dislike AJ but what I do hate is the premature overhyping of him by Hearn and Sky. Headlining shows based on his olympic gold medal and being referred to as a future world champion. Hearn and Sky can see £ notes every time Joshua puts his gloves on as they are trying to build a PPV star.

I cant help but think of sky taking Price over to a Klitschko fight in germany, interviewing him in the ring inside and empty arena and discussing how being there and seeing the scale of the event would help him in the near future when he was challenging for a world title. As soon as a heavyweight appears on the scene who hasnt got his belly hanging over his shorts the hopes and expectations land firmly on their shoulders. Price is the perfect example of how easily it can go wrong which is why Joshua will also take baby steps and hope not to get flattened along the way.

Personally I would piss myself if he did become huge and ditched matchroom and sky for somebody else. Warren and allegedly for example.