London’s O2 Arena saw a terrific night of boxing Saturday night (May 30, 2015), with three world title fights including Kell Brook’s successful IBF World Welterweight Title defense over Frankie Gavin and Lee Selby successfully taking the IBF World Featherweight title from Evgeny Gradovich. The biggest news of the night might have come at Heavyweight, as Britain’s heavyweight hope Anthony Joshua made a definitive statement by becoming the first person to stop tough veteran Kevin Johnson (29-6-1). Joshua earned the knock out in less than two rounds against a man who had taken Tyson Fury, Derrick Chisora and Vitaly Klitschko the distance and had never been down in his roughly 15 years as a pro. Joshua is still just 24 years old, and his record now moves to a perfect (13-0) with all the fights ending before the end of the third round. He has been the darling of the United Kingdom’s up and coming boxing scene, as he won a gold medal at the 2012 London Olympics. He turned professional in October of 2013, so he has been fighting often. In November of 2014 he took out veteran workhorse Michael Sprott in 1 round, and he suffered a small injury that postponed this meeting with Johnson from its initial December date. After taking a few months off, Joshua came back with fights in April and early May as well, scoring wins over Jason Gavern and Raphael Zumbano Love as he tuned up for this fight with Johnson. With the big win over Johnson, who people viewed as a test, expectations that were already sky high will now be through the ceiling. Joshua’s next appearance is already booked for July 18th, when he heads up to Manchester to bolster the undercard of the Scott Quigg vs Kiko Martinez WBA World Super Bantamweight title fight. Joshua’s opponent is yet to be named, but you can look for something similar to what he has been getting, which is veterans with long records and experience. There are choices for fights that could stir up some noise on the islands, such as a showdown with David Price, a fighter whose stock has fallen but has a big punch. Or perhaps undefeated (15-0) Hughie Fury, the brother of Heavyweight contender Tyson Fury. Expectations will be higher for Joshua’s following match, as he is scheduled to return to the O2 Arena on September 12th. He has passed every test so far with flying colors, and he has clearly established himself as someone to watch in the Heavyweight division. Most of the lines for his recent fights are in the five figure range (paying roughly -10000), so certainly a step up in opponent is called for. Perhaps names such as Derrick Chisora, Bryant Jennings and David Haye should be under consideration for September.
