Anthony Joshua might just be the first major acquisition as UFC president Dana White plots the launch of a boxing promotion in 2018.
For several months, White has teased that he was interested in getting involved in boxing while using the same tools that helped make mixed martial arts a global success through the UFC.
Reports surfaced this week that White was targeting Joshua as the key piece in launching a boxing promotion after raving about the British heavyweight in various interviews over the past year.
While there’s still no official word that White actually plans on making an offer to secure the rights to promote Joshua in his new organization, the former Olympic gold medalist sounds like he’s more than willing to listen.
“100-percent, I’m interested,” Joshua said on a media conference call promoting his upcoming fight. “Because we can work together. Remember, mine and Eddie’s relationship is a really good working relationship and I’m sure Eddie [Hearn] has an interest in working with Dana White. If it’s good business, it makes sense.
“We’ll listen, and 100 percent if it makes sense, we’re all in. So I’m happy that Dana’s coming into the game, hopefully we can add some excitement and we can progress forward and make some more money and make some good fights.”
White has named Joshua as the future of boxing, especially after his spectacular fight against Wladimir Klitschko ended up as one of the most talked about matches of the year not to mention the 90,000 fans that filled Wembley Stadium to watch the event.
White has never given specifics about how he planned to jump into boxing promotion but scoring a deal with a fighter the caliber of Joshua would certainly send shockwaves through the industry.
According to reports, White plans on attending Joshua’s fight against Joseph Parker next Saturday night in Cardiff, Wales with expectations that he’ll meet with the heavyweight champion and his team at some point surrounding the event.
What do you think of a potential partnership between Anthony Joshua and Dana White? Sound off in the comments and let us know
