Anthony Joshua vs. Jermaine Franklin | DAZN - 1 April 2023

[margaret thatcher]

eh, maybe if franky had beat whyte. i know josh is coming off 2 losses to a top man but hard for me to get excited about this

[tony1234]

Right date for this as anyone buying the PPV is a fool

[Syntax Error]

Thank goodness; we have a date, a venue, a trainer and an opponent.

That was one drawn out saga.

[Coco]

Decent comeback fight

[keithmoonhangover]

Looks like I'm alone in this but quite like this fight as a comeback. Franklin isn't a patsy, he's a black Otto Wallin

I agree, Good choice. If Joshua wins convincingly, it will be mission accomplished.

[Contendeh]

Looking forward to this fight. Franklin is a better opponent than I thought we were gonna get.

[margaret thatcher]

what were you expecting?

[gregregegg]

Franklin is decent for someone coming off 2 losses and a mental breakdown…

but I feel this is a poor choice. Franklin is coming off a “loss”. And if AJ brutally stops him early ot kinda kills the dillian Whyte fight seei mg as Whyte and Franklin was so close with most thinking Franklin won.

[nfc90210]

I guess, if nothing else, Dzan will find out how much of draw Joshua is in the abstract.

[Ruthless-RKO]

The good thing with Franklin, he’s already had that exposure in the UK.

Some had him beating Whyte or giving him a close fight.

They know AJ is fragile at the moment.

Could be a good one.

If AJ is still gunshy. It’s gna be a long night.

[maverick23]

The good thing with Franklin, he’s already had that exposure in the UK.

Some had him beating Whyte or giving him a close fight.

They know AJ is fragile at the moment.

Could be a good one.

If AJ is still gunshy. It’s gna be a long night.

He’s got exposure but ultimately he lost to Whyte. Us guys on here know he gave it a good go and it could have gone either way but it’s the casuals they need to be getting for AJ and I wonder whether they’ll go for this one. To be honest, I’d be surprised if they do as it’ll look like a one-sided fight on paper and £20 plus a DAZN sub isn’t a small amount at the moment for a lot of people.

[tony1234]

The good thing with Franklin, he’s already had that exposure in the UK.

Some had him beating Whyte or giving him a close fight.

They know AJ is fragile at the moment.

Could be a good one.

If AJ is still gunshy. It’s gna be a long night.

He’s got exposure but ultimately he lost to Whyte. Us guys on here know he gave it a good go and it could have gone either way but it’s the casuals they need to be getting for AJ and I wonder whether they’ll go for this one. To be honest, I’d be surprised if they do as it’ll look like a one-sided fight on paper and £20 plus a DAZN sub isn’t a small amount at the moment for a lot of people.

This is the problem, it's not a straight 20 quid on SKY box office, you have to muck about with a DAZN subscription, make an account then pay extra for the PPV and then if you forget to cancel you're hit with extra payment.
A simple red button is easy for impulse buys doing all that for DAZN is a waste of time

[maverick23]

The good thing with Franklin, he’s already had that exposure in the UK.

Some had him beating Whyte or giving him a close fight.

They know AJ is fragile at the moment.

Could be a good one.

If AJ is still gunshy. It’s gna be a long night.

He’s got exposure but ultimately he lost to Whyte. Us guys on here know he gave it a good go and it could have gone either way but it’s the casuals they need to be getting for AJ and I wonder whether they’ll go for this one. To be honest, I’d be surprised if they do as it’ll look like a one-sided fight on paper and £20 plus a DAZN sub isn’t a small amount at the moment for a lot of people.

This is the problem, it's not a straight 20 quid on SKY box office, you have to muck about with a DAZN subscription, make an account then pay extra for the PPV and then if you forget to cancel you're hit with extra payment.
A simple red button is easy for impulse buys doing all that for DAZN is a waste of time

It’s not a waste of time for a big fight and it’s real easy to use through a fire stick or smart TV. It’s just another obstacle to buy though when someone is only semi-interested.

[cpx2]

Can't see this doing well on PPV. Bizarre choice as well, they really must be keen for him to face an orthodox fighter, because if he takes Franklin out convincingly then it just makes AJ-Whyte II look less competitive. Wallin would've made sense, and if he took him out he'd have the edge over Fury.

If they get Whyte-Wallin on this card and AJ fights the winner, that might make more sense, but it'll probably be Chantelle Cameron chief support with Wardley and Cash as the only two other 'name' fights. Not exactly one I'll be shelling out for.

[handsofstone]

Best thing about the Franklin fight is if Joshua sweeps him aside early then we might be spared the Whyte rematch, i don't hate Joshua/Whyte 2 but I'd rather it be next rather than a big summer blockbuster

[joshj909]

Can't see this doing well on PPV. Bizarre choice as well, they really must be keen for him to face an orthodox fighter, because if he takes Franklin out convincingly then it just makes AJ-Whyte II look less competitive. Wallin would've made sense, and if he took him out he'd have the edge over Fury.

If they get Whyte-Wallin on this card and AJ fights the winner, that might make more sense, but it'll probably be Chantelle Cameron chief support with Wardley and Cash as the only two other 'name' fights. Not exactly one I'll be shelling out for.

About time Wardley had a step up. If he can face a top 30 guy then that would be a good scrap.

[BigDoofus]

[big lennox]

Big Doofus, how do you feel about Wilder calling Fury a cheat?

[Ruthless-RKO]

This is finalised!

[cpx2]

Can't see this doing well on PPV. Bizarre choice as well, they really must be keen for him to face an orthodox fighter, because if he takes Franklin out convincingly then it just makes AJ-Whyte II look less competitive. Wallin would've made sense, and if he took him out he'd have the edge over Fury.

If they get Whyte-Wallin on this card and AJ fights the winner, that might make more sense, but it'll probably be Chantelle Cameron chief support with Wardley and Cash as the only two other 'name' fights. Not exactly one I'll be shelling out for.

About time Wardley had a step up. If he can face a top 30 guy then that would be a good scrap.

Think he's slated to fight Kash Ali - the accuracy of that I'm not sure, but I read it (as well as the rest of the likely card; Cameron, Cash-Signani, Hughes-Courtenay) While that's not a horrendous fight, it's probably not the top 30 opponent we'd be hoping for. It's probably the best feasible defence of the British at the minute though.

[joshj909]

Can't see this doing well on PPV. Bizarre choice as well, they really must be keen for him to face an orthodox fighter, because if he takes Franklin out convincingly then it just makes AJ-Whyte II look less competitive. Wallin would've made sense, and if he took him out he'd have the edge over Fury.

If they get Whyte-Wallin on this card and AJ fights the winner, that might make more sense, but it'll probably be Chantelle Cameron chief support with Wardley and Cash as the only two other 'name' fights. Not exactly one I'll be shelling out for.

About time Wardley had a step up. If he can face a top 30 guy then that would be a good scrap.

Think he's slated to fight Kash Ali - the accuracy of that I'm not sure, but I read it (as well as the rest of the likely card; Cameron, Cash-Signani, Hughes-Courtenay) While that's not a horrendous fight, it's probably not the top 30 opponent we'd be hoping for. It's probably the best feasible defence of the British at the minute though.

Oh damn, mis-read it. Not a fan of that fight, he should give up that belt as Hughie or Adeleye would probably be the only British defences worth making. Dubois for the Commonwealth belt would be a good step up but probably difficult to make.

Facing the Kabayel/Smakici winner for the EBU belt would be more likely and probably as far as he could go so he should atleast give it a go? He would probably be next in line after Kossobutskiy.

[KiwiRider]

Thank goodness; we have a date, a venue, a trainer and an opponent.

That was one drawn out saga.

For sure, now all we need is the PPV price for the final laugh.

[Boxerbeetle]

Thank goodness; we have a date, a venue, a trainer and an opponent.

That was one drawn out saga.

For sure, now all we need is the PPV price for the final laugh.

DAZN don’t do PPV mate, don’t you remember? They changed the game.

[cormack]

the problem with the franklin fight is if Aj batters him then people are going to say he was a shite opponent and if he stays in for the 12 because he really is a tough nut to crack which certainly was the case vs whyte then Joshuas going to be slaughtered for not battering him in style .
No win scenario for me .

[Ruthless-RKO]

Sources: Anthony Joshua-Jermaine Franklin close for April 1

Former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua and Jermaine Franklin are in the process of finalizing a deal for a fight on April 1 at the O2 Arena in London, sources told ESPN.

Terms have been verbally agreed but there are no signed contracts yet, sources said, who added that there are other options for Joshua in the unlikely event the deal falls apart.

Joshua, one of the biggest stars in global boxing, will look to rebound from back-to-back losses to Oleksandr Usyk for the unified heavyweight championship. Joshua (24-3, 22 KOs) dropped his WBA, WBO and IBF titles to Usyk in August 2021 via unanimous decision. The 33-year-old from England was defeated in the September rematch by split decision.

Now, Joshua will seek his first win since December 2020 when he takes on Franklin, an underdog from Saginaw, Michigan, coming off a career-best performance.

The 29-year-old had never competed on the world-class level before he met Dillian Whyte in a majority-decision loss in November. Franklin (21-1, 14 KOs) has now parlayed that effort against Joshua's former rival into the biggest opportunity of his life.

"Jermaine is a world-class heavyweight on his way to bringing a big win back home," Franklin's promoter, Dmitry Salita, told ESPN. "We hope to get the deal over the finish line shortly. I signed Jermaine a little more than three years ago and I always believed he had the skills to be one of the best heavyweights in the world.

"He's shown that throughout his career and to worldwide fans in his last fight against Dillian Whyte. Not only has he showed he has world-class skills, but he's shown the mental strength to perform thousands of miles away from home in a hostile crowd and that will be a key ingredient on April 1.

"Like myself, most fans and most press felt Jermaine won the fight. Being an underdog and doing what he did is incredible on a such a high level. Some similarities to [Andy] Ruiz vs. Joshua. Ruiz was also the underdog and they both size, quick hands, a good chin, the ability to come forward and the desire to win."

In one of the biggest upsets in heavyweight championship history, Joshua was stopped by Ruiz in Round 7 of their 2019 fight in New York, AJ's lone bout in the U.S. Joshua recaptured his three titles from Ruiz that December in Saudi Arabia via unanimous decision. He's ranked No. 4 by ESPN at heavyweight while Franklin is No. 10.