Joe Joyce Next Fight: Who Could The British Heavyweight Face On September 24th?

JOE JOYCE NEXT FIGHT TARGETED FOR SEP 24 AS JUGGERNAUT STEAMROLLS CHRISTIAN HAMMER

Joe Joyce (13-0, 12 KO’s) boxed for the first time since his sixth-round stoppage of Frenchmen Carlos Takam just under 12 months ago at the very same arena; OVO Wembley. The WBO #1 ranked heavyweight suffered a wrist injury late last year which put a hold on the 36-year-old 2016 Olympic Silver Medalist’s career.

Joyce stopped Romanian-German Christian Hammer (27-9) in the fourth round after a competitive first 3 where admittedly Joyce got hit much more than he would’ve liked especially in round one where Hammer could not miss with the overhand right but Joyce’s granite chin saw him ‘weather the early storm’ and take out Hammer in the fourth after dropping him in the third.

Joe Joyce was planning to face Joseph Parker on July 2 and then September but Parker signed with BOXXER/Sky Sports so Joyce will have to look elsewhere for his next opponent. Even pre-Joyce vs Hammer, the pencilled-in date for Joyce’s next fight was September 24, likely in London. The juggernaut is expected to return on that date against a top 15 heavyweight before targeting the Usyk-Joshua 2 winner.

With Joseph Parker off the table, who else could Joyce face?

Joe Joyce Next Fight vs Martin Bakole?

Probably the most straightforward fight to make for Joe Joyce’s next fight is top 15 heavyweight, Congo’s Martin Bakole. Bakole (18-1) recently upset 2016 Olympic gold medalist Tony Yoka in France in a career-best win that elevated him onto the world scene.

Despite this, that fight was not seen by that many people in the UK and Bakole is not a big name meaning they could probably get Bakole relatively inexpensively in a fight that would interest fights fans. Albeit it is not the Pay-Per-View fight that S-Jam are looking for, it is still an excellent fight that can be built well and be a marquee headliner for BT Sport.

Bakole, Ranked in the top 15 by every governing body, would give Joyce rounds against a quality heavyweight before facing the Usyk Joshua 2 winner in 2023.

Joe Joyce vs Agit Kabayel

Joe Joyce was mandatory for the European title in 2019 when Kabayel was champion but Kabayel vacated the belt. Agit Kabayel (22-0) has done nothing really of note in the 3 years due to pandemic and inactivity that has seen him compete just 3x against Kevin Johnson, Evgenios Lazaridis and Pavel Sour. Kabayel needs a big fight and this could well be it.

Kabayel famously beat Derek Chisora in Monaco in 2017, and has not only been linked with a fight with Joyce but was strongly under consideration as the Tyson Fury opponent in December 2020. It is likely that the British public will know and recognise Kabayel’s name and this would be a good option for Joe Joyce’s next fight.

Joe Joyce vs Otto Wallin

Many felt Swedish Southpaw Otto Wallin (24-1) was unlucky not to get a stoppage win over reigning WBC champion Tyson Fury when Wallin opened a major cut on top of the eyes of Fury back in their Las Vegas fight in 2019. Wallin shot up in popularity due to the closeness of the fight with Fury and secured two more dates on Showtime beating Travis Kauffman and Dominic Breazeale with relative ease.

Wallin, unfortunately, had to sit out a year after signing to fight Dillian Whyte for October 2021 but Whyte pulled out with a shoulder injury just 10 days out. Wallin has boxed twice since; outpointing Kamil Sokolowski on Sky Sports and Rydell Booker in the states. The Swede is ready to be thrown into a big fight and with his name being linked to Fury and Whyte, Joyce vs Wallin sellable fight.

Wallin is definitely the best of the three options here and a difficult fight for Joyce stylistically, but it is also the best preparation for Oleksandr Usyk should he beat Anthony Joshua. Wallin is one of few elite southpaw heavyweights and Joyce up to now is yet to face a top southpaw in the pro ranks.

By Darshan Desai

Also Read Our Ringside Report: Joyce vs Hammer: Juggernaut Ends 12-month layoff To Stop Tough Romanian In 4 Rounds