Joe Joyce vs. Christian Hammer next Saturday, July 2nd on BT Sport
Undefeated highly ranked heavyweight contender Joe Joyce will be in action next Saturday night in a 12-round headliner against veteran Christian Hammer live on BT Sport at the Wembley Arena in London, England.
#1 WBO, #2 WBC Joyce (13-0, 12 KOs) had been in negotiations with former WBO champion Joseph Parker, but that match fell through. Hammer has lost three out of his last five fights and looking a little past it.
Instead of Joyce getting Parker, he’ll be facing the 34-year-old journeyman Hammer (27-9, 17 KOs), who will be coming in on three weeks’ notice. It’s not the ideal situation for Parker, Hammer, or the fans that will be tuning in to watch the card, but that’s how it goes.
On a positive note, the undercard has a couple of excellent fights below:
Jason Cunningham vs Zolani Tete, and Callum Johnson vs Igor Mikhalkin. If the main event between Joyce and Hammer fails to entertain, then there’s an excellent chance that one or both of these undercard clashes will provide excitement for the fans.
Joyce, 37, is coming off an 11-month layoff since his win over Carlos Takam in July of last year. That’s a huge period out of the ring for a fighter Joyce’s age, and he’s going to have to stay busy if he doesn’t want to wreck his career.
Undercard:
Jason Cunningham vs. Zolani Tete
Callum Johnson vs. Igor Mikhalkin
Nathan Heaney vs. Nizar Trimech
Mark Chamberlain vs. Marc Vidal
Micky Burke vs. Serge Ambomo
Henry Turner vs. Jakub Laskowski
Tommy Fletcher vs. Darryl Sharp
Arnold Obodai vs. TBA
“This is heavyweight boxing and it only takes one punch. I have to be switched on and I have to be careful and doing my work, and the stuff I’m working on with Salas in Vegas,” said Joe Joyce to talkSPORT Boxing about his fight next Saturday night against Christian Hammer.
“My whole training camp is geared around fighting Joseph Parker, and last-minute changes. I can adjust. Within 20 seconds of getting in the ring, I can work my opponent out.
“Throughout the amateurs, you don’t know who you’re fighting until you get in the ring. You don’t know if they’re orthodox or southpaw. You have to be able to adjust, and that’s what I’ve had to do.
“I knew it was 90% there and that we’d both agreed,” said Joyce about his fight with Joseph Parker that fell through. I assumed the contracts were signed, but perhaps they were not.
“Frank has a deal with BT Sport, and BT Sport would want me to fight on their network,” said Joyce. “So Joseph signing with the rival broadcasters caused a problem.
“He was a free agent in the first place and could have gone back to allegedly or BT and negotiated. Perhaps it might have gone to purse bids. I’m looking to fight Joseph Parker. It’s a great fight and people want to see it,” said Joyce.
