In 2013, Anthony Joshua made his O2 Arena debut. The Watford-born star last competed at the venue in 2016 and has competed at football stadiums ever since. Now Joshua is going back to where it all began and is looking to return to the title fight against American power-puncher Jermaine Franklin.
The heavyweight duel will take place on April 1st and will be broadcast on DAZN.
Joshua (24-3, 22 KOs) is a former two-time Unified Heavyweight Champion. As an Olympic gold medalist, this will be his first time participating in a non-title bout, whether regional or global, since 2015, when he defeated Raphael Zumbano Love via TKO. Joshua is changing things up and is now working alongside Derrick James, his third coach since removing Robert McCracken and Robert Garcia from his inner circle.
With a win, Joshua could be in a perfect place to challenge for gold again. Next, he could face Dillian Whyte (“AJ” beat Whyte in 2015), Deontay Wilder or WBC Heavyweight Champion Tyson Fury in a rematch. For now, though, he’s mostly focused on Franklin.
MORE: Join DAZN to watch Anthony Joshua vs. Jermaine Franklin
Speaking of Franklin (21-1, 14 KOs), the Saginaw, Michigan born fighter turned pro in 2015 and has 14 fights won by KO. He faced Whyte in a close contest in November and lost by majority decision. Now the orthodox fighter is looking to impress against Joshua and increase his stock in boxing’s heavyweight division.
Can Franklin pull off the excitement? Which Joshua will we see on fight night? The Sporting News is here for a look at how to bet on this heavyweight fight.
Anthony Joshua vs Jermaine Franklin betting odds
According to Caesars, Anthony Joshua is the -1100 favorite while Jermaine Franklin is the +700 underdog.
Anthony Joshua vs Jermaine Franklin betting trends
- Joshua via KO/TKO: -380
- Joshua by decision: +420
- Franklin via KO/TKO: +1200
- Franklin by decision: +1200
- Draw: +2400
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Anthony Joshua vs. Jermaine Franklin prediction, best bets
This heavyweight fight has multiple angles that can result in a unique firefight.
Despite his criticism, Joshua’s fighting style can still limit fighters to give him an advantage. Joshua’s jab connect percentage is 25%. He also throws the 6th lowest total shots per round at a rate of 39.4 and the 5th lowest power shots landed at 6.6. His opponents land the ninth fewest shots per round, averaging an 8.0 (5.1 landing mark, eighth lowest in boxing).
Franklin has fast hands and nice combinations. He landed 165 punches to the body from a total of 606 shots (27.2%) against Whyte and hit single digit shots only once. Joshua needs to be on guard as he hasn’t been fighting inside lately.
Could Franklin’s style be too much for Joshua? In the first fight against Oleksandr Usyk, the Ukrainian landed 148 punches, the most (at the time) from a Joshua opponent. Joshua landed 19.2% of his shots, but in the rematch he landed 23.9% of his shots, showing signs of improvement. Even so, Usyk landed 170 shots, a new record against Joshua, beating him 79-29 in the last three rounds.
“My strength is my ability to adapt, find my opponent’s weaknesses and uncover them,” Franklin told Boxing Scene, “I find a way to win and I love getting spectacular knockouts. My goals are to improve with every fight, keep learning, and master sweet science. As soon as you think you have nothing to improve, you lose.”
MORE: Joyce: Joshua needs to ‘get his mind right’
Now let’s focus on the mental side of things. As we saw in the second Usyk fight, because of Joshua’s unusual post-fight shenanigans, people are wondering where his head would be for this fight now that he’s looking from the outside in.
It turns out that a reset might be best for him.
Joshua has teamed up with Derrick James, the trainer of Errol Spence Jr. and Jermell Charlo, to adapt to boxing’s ever-changing landscape. James understands the basics of boxing and focuses on improving a boxer’s technique. His fighters adapt from close range to long range and Joshua chose this trainer for his unique training style.
“Well it’s not the fact that I went to Derrick James looking for old school style, but looking for improvement and to get what I need and to keep looking for more , I came across Derrick James and I really rate him as a coach,” Joshua told talkSPORT. “I don’t want to put pressure on Derrick James and say that whatever happens in the future is up to him, good or bad. it’s all on me But apart from what he does for me as a coach, I really appreciate him.”
MORE: Everything you need to know about Anthony Joshua vs. Jermaine Franklin
He won’t be the only one with questions. A week before the fight, Franklin filed a lawsuit against Salita Promotions, the organization that promotes him. Will he remember that when he goes into fight night?
Franklin put up a close fight against Whyte, with some questions assessing the bias on Whyte’s home pitch. Will the same come into play here with an impassioned crowd cheering for Joshua?
If the fight ends by knockout, Franklin could be the one to raise his hand. Don’t discount the excitement, especially given Joshua’s recent struggles. However, with AJ potentially keeping his distance while also applying pressure, the fight that goes all the way could be the right game. If Joshua Franklin overtakes or pushes back, the former world champion can put himself back in the winning column.
Expect it to be close, competitive and fun, just the kind of fight the heavyweight division needs.
Sporting News prediction: Joshua on split decision (+420)
