Make Or Break For Joshua As He Returns To The O2

Over the years, London’s O2 Arena has been something of a fortress for Anthony Joshua. 

On Saturday night he returns, perhaps bruised by events of the past year, but buoyed by the opportunity to rediscover a missing beast. 

Finding that inner beast could prove a timely and fearsome reminder to the heavyweight scene who, by and large, have revelled in his defeats. Now, with his mind unshackled from the burden that world champion status yielded, Joshua must fight to show he belongs. 

If he can, it will no doubt reignite the failed flame that is a mega-fight with Tyson Fury. 

But first there is the hurdle of Jermaine Franklin. A razor-thin decision defeat to Dillian Whyte is the basis on which UK fans will assess Joshua’s task. But a gruelling camp in Michigan has seen a visibly more conditioned Franklin take stage during fight-week. 

However, let’s not blow things out of proportion. This is a job Joshua should, and quite frankly needs to, finish inside the distance. To do so, he may need to bring back the fighter that British boxing fans have craved for years. 

The boxer who fought to the motto of seek and destroy. The fighter who was as unsympathetic in the ring as he was unpresuming out of it. The fighter who inspired a generation of boxing enthusiasts.  

That fighter seems a far cry from what we have seen in the last two years. Sure, the Rocky movie night at Wembley against Wladimir Klitschko will stand the test of time. But six years on, Joshua cuts an apprehensive figure inside the ropes. That needs to change. 

So forget about being a two-time world champion. Forget about the 12 consecutive world title fights. Forget about being one of only four unified heavyweight champions from Britain. 

Because failure on Saturday, and the fans will forget all that too. 

Make no mistake, British boxing needs Anthony Joshua.

The sport’s six-month merry-go-round has been a story of failed tests, failed negotiations and failure to meet the demands of fans who are increasingly keen to explore the once shunned avenue of mixed martial arts. 

Which is exactly the reason why we need to keep hold of our biggest stars. Love him or hate him, Joshua is the perfect protagonist in every heavyweight storyline. 

And, with the heavyweight landscape in disarray, the more options the better. Since Joshua’s second defeat to Oleksandr Usyk in August, there has been just ONE world title fight involving the big boys. 

So let’s hope Saturday night is the beginning of a new dawn for one of British boxing’s greatest assets. Anthony Joshua will never lose his star appeal, nor has he lost that barbarian inside him. It is just a question of whether he can win the battle between his ears. 

Make no bones about it, a career is on the line. So go on AJ, show them what you’re f****** made of. 

Oscar Bevis