Anthony Joshua had on Saturday lost his IBF, WBO and WBA heavyweight titles for the second time after a devastating defeat to Oleksandr Usyk at the Totteham Hotspur Stadium, London.
Joshua who suffered a second defeat of his career lost with an unanimous decision after a clean sweep of Judges scorecard 117-112, 116-112, 115-113 in the Ukrainian’s favour.
AJ could be counting on his rematch clause if activated to offer him the opportunity of reclaiming his belts, even his recent defeat had scuppered any immediate plans for a unification bout with WBC king Tyson Fury.
Talks of all-British unification title had suffered a collapse in the summer but defeat to Usyk has thrown such hopes to an abrupt end from happening any time soon.
However, while AJ’s immediate focus could be on the Usyk rematch, the former IBF, WBO and WBA heavyweight Champion is still eager to take on Fury and Wilder – even if there are no titles on the line.
‘The road to undisputed, it’s good,’ Joshua said in his post-fight press conference.
‘But I’d fight Tyson Fury, Wilder and whatnot without the belts.
‘The belts are fun, it’s great, it’s legacy but with or without the belts I’ll fight whoever.
‘The road to undisputed is a nice title to have and a nice title to chase, but would you still watch it without the belts?
‘That’s the main thing, you’ve got two competitive fighters in the ring from UK soil that just want to go toe-to-toe.’
Meanwhile, Eddie Hearn suggested the rematch could take place in February and March with Usyk eager for it to take place in Kiev, although the Matchroom chief suggested such a plan would be ‘unlikely’.