Carlos Takam to fight Anthony Joshua after Kubrat Pulev withdraws with injury
Beaten by Joseph Parker in 2016, French-Cameroonian boxer Carlos Takam will square off against unified heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua later this month.
Joshua, who boasts a 19-0 professional record, was expected to put his belts on the line against Bulgarian Kubrat Pulev on October 29 (NZ time), but an injury to Pulev during sparring put the bout in doubt.
On Tuesday (NZ time), the IBF No 1 and current mandatory contender was forced to withdraw due to the muscle tear in his shoulder and Takam was called in for the bout.
The 36-year-old currently sits immediately below Pulev in the IBF ratings, and was the top target for Joshua's manager Eddie Hearn should Pulev withdraw from the fight.
Anthony Joshua had plenty to smile about after beating Wladimir Klitschko in a world heavyweight boxing title fight at London's Wembley Stadium in April.
Hearn said Takam, who hasn't fought since June, was on standby as soon as Joshua's bout against Pulev was announced.
"It's a difficult position for AJ. Having prepared meticulously for the style and height of Pulev, he now faces a completely different style and challenge in Takam - this hasn't happened in his career."
Joshua's fight with Takam will be a good guide to where Parker stands in relation to Joshua.
Parker beat Takam by unanimous decision in a tough fight in Manukau. At the time, Joshua said he would have knocked out Takam, who showed he could take a punch against Parker. Now Joshua gets a chance to prove that statement.
A win over Takam would likely free Joshua - the current IBF, WBA and IBO heavyweight champion - to pursue a possible unification bout against Parker, the current WBO heavyweight champion, or American Deontay Wilder, who has held the WBC heavyweight title since 2015.
Takam has a 35-3-1 record with 27 wins by knockout and will likely give a good indication in comparing Joshua and Parker being the first opponent the two have had in common.
He lost to Parker in 2016 by unanimous decision - 116-112 116-112 115-113.
Parker's promoter David Higgins confirmed they didn't have any approach about filling Pulev's place for the fight.
He said Takam was the natural replacement given his IBF ranking.
Higgins said they were going through the due diligence process in terms of Parker's next potential opponent.
The hope was they may have something in place in the next week but conceded it could well take longer than that.
- Stuff
Beaten by Joseph Parker in 2016, French-Cameroonian boxer Carlos Takam will square off against unified heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua later this month.
Joshua, who boasts a 19-0 professional record, was expected to put his belts on the line against Bulgarian Kubrat Pulev on October 29 (NZ time), but an injury to Pulev during sparring put the bout in doubt.
On Tuesday (NZ time), the IBF No 1 and current mandatory contender was forced to withdraw due to the muscle tear in his shoulder and Takam was called in for the bout.
The 36-year-old currently sits immediately below Pulev in the IBF ratings, and was the top target for Joshua's manager Eddie Hearn should Pulev withdraw from the fight.
Anthony Joshua had plenty to smile about after beating Wladimir Klitschko in a world heavyweight boxing title fight at London's Wembley Stadium in April.
Hearn said Takam, who hasn't fought since June, was on standby as soon as Joshua's bout against Pulev was announced.
"It's a difficult position for AJ. Having prepared meticulously for the style and height of Pulev, he now faces a completely different style and challenge in Takam - this hasn't happened in his career."
Joshua's fight with Takam will be a good guide to where Parker stands in relation to Joshua.
Parker beat Takam by unanimous decision in a tough fight in Manukau. At the time, Joshua said he would have knocked out Takam, who showed he could take a punch against Parker. Now Joshua gets a chance to prove that statement.
A win over Takam would likely free Joshua - the current IBF, WBA and IBO heavyweight champion - to pursue a possible unification bout against Parker, the current WBO heavyweight champion, or American Deontay Wilder, who has held the WBC heavyweight title since 2015.
Takam has a 35-3-1 record with 27 wins by knockout and will likely give a good indication in comparing Joshua and Parker being the first opponent the two have had in common.
He lost to Parker in 2016 by unanimous decision - 116-112 116-112 115-113.
Parker's promoter David Higgins confirmed they didn't have any approach about filling Pulev's place for the fight.
He said Takam was the natural replacement given his IBF ranking.
Higgins said they were going through the due diligence process in terms of Parker's next potential opponent.
The hope was they may have something in place in the next week but conceded it could well take longer than that.
- Stuff