Behind the ?he said, he said? drama involved in why Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder won?t be fighting any time soon, there are a few damning realities.
First, Wilder is nowhere near the star Joshua is.
Second, most knowledgeable boxing people believe Joshua to be the significantly better fighter with the better overall r?sum?.
Third, most of those same knowledgeable boxing people believe that Joshua would beat Wilder in a head-to-head battle or that, at the very least, Wilder?s only real chance of winning is via one-punch deliverance from the jaws of defeat.
So, then, why exactly is the boxing world being so hard on Anthony Joshua for the failure to wrangle a Deontay Wilder bout? Outside of his UK home base and a few pockets of loyal fanboy fandom scattered throughout the Universo Pugilistico, ?AJ? has been taking major flak for this fight not happening.
And, no, ?Invading America? against low man on the heavyweight challenger totem pole, Jarrell ?Big Baby? Miller at Madison Square Garden in New York, won?t stop the ?he must be afraid of Wilder? or ?Why?s he avoiding Wilder? talk. If anything, Joshua in NYC will make that talk bigger and bolder.
The chatter won?t go away until Joshua is finally in the ring with Wilder?and maybe not even after that?because this whole idea taps into the core of boxing fans? macho fairytale belief system. The pampered rich-kid boxer being chased by the noble banger is a story that resonates in the minds of fight fans and it?s been used many times in recent years, to various extents, by savvy promoters and managers to sell their guys without putting them at risk.
Gennady Golovkin?s push to stardom leaned heavily on this dynamic. ?Chasing? Felix Sturm got him to America. ?Chasing? Sergio Martinez made him an HBO fixture. ?Chasing? Miguel Cotto earned him sweetheart status with the WBC. ?Chasing? Canelo Alvarez got him his high-profile PPV paydays. The image of ?Triple G,? the fearsome warrior, chasing down sissy millionaires made the Kazakh KO artist an instantly sympathetic figure in the hearts of wannabe tough guy fight fans and ?purists? who openly pine away for the noble warriors of the sport?s overly-glorified past.
Manny Pacquiao played that dynamic for years while ?in pursuit? of Floyd Mayweather. And not only did the Filipino icon become a sympathetic figure, he also, much like Golovkin, got a pass when it came to level of opposition. After all, if that bigshot sissy at the top won?t fight him, then all he can do is fight those who aren?t ?chicken??and those non-chickens almost invariably tend to be tailor-made fall guys of the promoter?s own choosing.
In the business of boxing, getting your guy the benefits of a win without the risk of suffering a loss is ideal. And, given that this public relations strategy tends to be highly effective, it?s easy to see why every tough guy warrior these days seems to be chasing down some business-obsessed coward.
For his best interests to be met, Deontay Wilder doesn?t really need to fight Anthony Joshua?he just needs to look like he WANTS to fight Anthony Joshua. And Joshua, to be played as a patsy in this game, has to just keep being aloof and ?above it all,? refusing to bend to the whims of the ?lesser? fighter.
Forget the realities of the situation and what is or is not happening behind the scenes in pursuit of this bout, the world sees a three-belt champ with all the money, all the fame, and all the say-so not meeting the challenge of a seemingly earnest one-belt champ. The tendency among fight fans, even smart veteran fans, is to hold the more powerful fighter responsible with a ?c?mon, just bend a bit to make this happen? attitude.
And while Joshua-Wilder continues to be an off-the-table non-event, Wilder can claim equal footing as Joshua and have a built-in excuse for any dubious matchmaking decisions in the future.
Meanwhile, no matter who Joshua fights or how deserving that challenger may be, he?ll be blasted with ?Why aren?t you fighting Wilder? scorn after every non-Wilder bout.
Team Joshua will have to decide whether living under that shadow is a non-issue when it comes to their fighter?s long-term bankability or if it?s in their best interest to call some bluffs, give in a bit, and make a real effort to get this fight done.
