HBO's three-fight deal for Andre Ward to fight Anthony Joshua and Tony Bellew
Posted: 08 Jun 2022, 09:48
"Andre Ward admits he had a three-fight plan with Anthony Joshua on the list"
Andre Ward’s career could have been so different if he had carried on boxing.
The 2004 Olympic champion - who called it quits after repeating victory over arch-rival Sergey Kovalev at 175-pounds in 2017 - has revealed Anthony Joshua and Tony Bellew were briefly on his hitlist.
Joshua's stock had risen significantly that year after a titanic victory over heavyweight legend Wladimir Klitschko while the Bomber - who starred in the seventh instalment of the Rocky franchise alongside Ward and Sylvestor Stallone - beat David Haye in the first of two bouts against the Hayemaker that year.
The former two-division champion told Joe Rogan in 2019: "I didn't know for sure (if I'd retire).
"But I kind of feeling like, 'Okay, I felt like that after the first one (Kovalev fight), this may be it after the second one.'
"But then the opportunities started coming. HBO had a three-fight deal on the table. And basically, it was going to be a gimme fight in Oakland, at home, kind of a celebration.
"A move to cruiserweight to fight Tony Bellew, probably in the UK.
"There was nothing left at light-heavyweight. So that was the three-fight exit strategy with HBO.
"A gimme fight at light-heavy, I was probably going to do a catchweight at home, cruiserweight. So that was the three-fight deal. And the third fight was going to be Anthony Joshua.
"Don't know if it had been made, we hadn't even gotten that far. But that was our plan - maybe 200lbs," he said when asked about whether he would bulk up to fight at heavyweight.
"I'm never going to be as big as you guys. So why would I weigh myself down? Very dangerous situation. But that was something we were talking about."
He added: "It's all good, though. I've been fighting big guys my whole life."
Thoughts?
Andre Ward’s career could have been so different if he had carried on boxing.
The 2004 Olympic champion - who called it quits after repeating victory over arch-rival Sergey Kovalev at 175-pounds in 2017 - has revealed Anthony Joshua and Tony Bellew were briefly on his hitlist.
Joshua's stock had risen significantly that year after a titanic victory over heavyweight legend Wladimir Klitschko while the Bomber - who starred in the seventh instalment of the Rocky franchise alongside Ward and Sylvestor Stallone - beat David Haye in the first of two bouts against the Hayemaker that year.
The former two-division champion told Joe Rogan in 2019: "I didn't know for sure (if I'd retire).
"But I kind of feeling like, 'Okay, I felt like that after the first one (Kovalev fight), this may be it after the second one.'
"But then the opportunities started coming. HBO had a three-fight deal on the table. And basically, it was going to be a gimme fight in Oakland, at home, kind of a celebration.
"A move to cruiserweight to fight Tony Bellew, probably in the UK.
"There was nothing left at light-heavyweight. So that was the three-fight exit strategy with HBO.
"A gimme fight at light-heavy, I was probably going to do a catchweight at home, cruiserweight. So that was the three-fight deal. And the third fight was going to be Anthony Joshua.
"Don't know if it had been made, we hadn't even gotten that far. But that was our plan - maybe 200lbs," he said when asked about whether he would bulk up to fight at heavyweight.
"I'm never going to be as big as you guys. So why would I weigh myself down? Very dangerous situation. But that was something we were talking about."
He added: "It's all good, though. I've been fighting big guys my whole life."
Thoughts?
