Deontay Wilder Reportedly Agrees To Terms For Anthony Joshua Superfight

By: Sean Crose

“BREAKING NEWS for all you @anthonyfjoshua fans… The $50M offer for him to fight me next in the US is still available. Today I even agreed to their offer to fight Joshua next in the UK. If he prefers the fight in the UK, the ball is in their court. It’s up to them to choose.”

The above was tweeted out Monday by WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder, who was making it clear that he he accepted Anthony Joshua’s terms to fight in England for his title, along with Joshua’s WBA, IBF and WBO heavyweight titles.

Photo Credit: Deontay Wilder Twitter Account

According to ESPN, Wilder’s co-manager, Shelly Finkel, stated the following on Monday: “We have agreed to the terms that Eddie has put out to us for a fight in the U.K.. Deontay has accepted his terms to fight in the U.K. Deontay sent an email to Joshua (Sunday) night and I sent one today to Barry Hearn and Eddie telling them that we officially accept the offer to fight under the terms they gave us and to send us the contract,”

As Wilder said, the ball is in the court of team Joshua now. Britain’s Joshua is considered the current king of the heavyweight division. Not only does he hold a majority of the prominent belts, his victory in a war over onetime long reigning division king Wladimir Kltischko established the fighter as the man to beat throughout the fight world. Yet America’s Wilder has been standing in the way of Joshua’s complete dominance. The fact that both men are the height of NBA stars and have devastating knockout power will make the bout, should it happen, a must see for fans – even casual fans.

The Joshua-Wilder deal, should it come to fruition, will consist of two fights, the first being held in England, the second in the United States. Joshua now regularly packs entire stadiums in his homeland and it would be no surprise if a match with Wilder would bring in a live audience of close to one hundred thousand people. The first fight would reputedly transpire this autumn.

The internet was set ablaze with today’s news, with some journalists and analysts acting as if the fight was already a done deal while others encouraged caution. The fact that a fight between two of the most exciting athletes in the world got so much closer to fruition, however, was enough to get pundits and fans alike talking.