'I'm coming' – Joe Joyce sends message to Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury and the heavyweight elite following comeback win over Kash Ali
17/03/2024 11:46
Joe Joyce is ready to mix it with boxing's best heavyweights again.
'The Juggernaut' boasted a perfect 15-0 record and was seemingly on the verge of a world title shot before he suffered back-to-back stoppage defeats against Chinese heavyweight Zhilei Zhang.
In April 2023, Zhang wore Joyce down and the doctor stopped the fight in the sixth round due to damage to the eye of the British Olympic medallist.
The 38-year-old tried to rebound from his first professional defeat in a rematch with 'Big Bang', but that fight ended more brutally than the original.
Zhang scored a spectacular one-shot knockout win in round three when they squared off for a second time last September.
On Saturday night, Joyce got his career back on track with a last-gasp knockout win over Kash Ali at the Resorts World Arena in Birmingham.
Now, he feels ready to take on another top-tier heavyweight after previously picking up impressive stoppage victories over Joseph Parker and Daniel Dubois.
"I wanna be one of the best and I'm right there," Joyce told talkSPORT Fight Night immediately after beating Ali.
"So, I'm up for all these big fights. Obviously, there's some rematches that need to take place and some fights that need to happen. But I'm coming for all of the fights.
"Any opportunities in Saudi, we'll see. Here in the UK and America. The world is my oyster, especially as a heavyweight. I'm really excited get these big fight nights."
Joyce is open to fighting on the undercard of Dmitry Bivol vs Artur Beterbiev, which will see his promoter, Frank Warren, put forward five fighters to clash against five boxers from Eddie Hearn's stable on June 1.
He added: "I'm up for getting in again, being more active this year and giving some big, entertaining fights.
"I'm ready. I'm just gonna have a little rest, reflect with my team, and come again. I'm really excited to start the year off with a bang, with a good knockout, and I got some rounds under my belt as well.”
Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk are boxing's two best heavyweights, but they are set to fight each other for all the belts on May 18 before potentially squaring off in a rematch later this year.
Anthony Joshua is hoping to face the winner. In the meantime, he may want to stay busy and an all-British blockbuster with his former sparring partner could pique his interest.
Deontay Wilder is looking for a comeback opponent after suffering a shocking defeat to Parker, who will be keen to avenge his only KO defeat after recently outpointing Zhang.
Joyce is certainly not short of options. It'll be interesting to see what route he takes after reviving his career by beating Ali and sending a statement of intent to the rest of the heavyweight division.
