Earlier this week there was exciting news that a potential breakthrough had been made in the bid to agree a deal that will see Anthony Joshua contest Joseph Parker for his WBO heavyweight crown.
Ever since the current WBA and IBF champion famously toppled one of the heavyweight greats in Vladimir Klitschko he immediately reiterated his ambition to hold all four titles.
The two men standing in his way of realizing that ambition both present contrastingly tough challenges. Parker is the less experienced of the two when it comes to the top level fights but has plenty of time to improve and already demonstrates great power along with a substantial physical presence. The other champion Joshua wants to dethrone, Deontay Wilder is much more ring-weathered and on paper looks the far dangerous contest for Joshua, knocking out all but one of his previous 39 opponents.
There is no denying the Watford fighter stepped it up to a whole new level during that historic bout with Klitschko compared with his previous 19 contests. However, setting out to be the undisputed heavyweight champion will require Joshua to go up another couple of gears inside the ring.
Perhaps the biggest thing to overcome during this conquest is the mental challenge, believing he can achieve an ambition no one has ever managed before.
When you don’t have a previous example to look back on it can be difficult to sustain self-confidence throughout all the testing times.
Alongside the prospect of braving unchartered territory, there are also the recent comments by former world heavyweight champion Tyson Fury, who was so confident Wilder would beat Joshua he was willing to bet any fan £5,000.
While Fury has not fought for over two years and is currently without a boxing licence he is a man that will always find joy with playing mind games because of what he can do in the ring.
Being the first man to stop Klitschko in almost a decade, Joshua is fully aware of the ‘Gypsy King’ and is likely to take note of everything he says.
Whilst the two might finally step foot into the ring with one another further down the line Joshua must for now show the utmost focus and mental resilience by preparing for the imminent fight with Parker.
Blocking out any exterior distractions will give the Olympic gold medallist the best possible chance of putting in the necessary groundwork and emerging triumphant against the New Zealander later this year.
So much focus is on Joshua’s next opponent but don’t forget the Brit’s biggest foe is himself. If he can continue to show true bravery and not overthink the scale of the task then there is every possibility of going down as one of the best.
