Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder will both fight on the same card in Saudi Arabia in December ahead of a potential 2024 clash between the former heavyweight champions.
Joshua will take on Otto Wallin, who took current WBC champion Tyson Fury the distance in 2019, while Wilder will fight former WBO titlist Joseph Parker on a big card in Riyadh on December 23.
The date and venue were originally set aside to host the undisputed fight between Fury and Oleksandr Usyk, though the former’s unexpectedly hard fight with MMA star Francis Ngannou has meant that clash has been pushed back.
Should they both come through their respective outings, Joshua and Wilder will likely face off next year as the pair try and rebuild following the loss of their world champion status, with the Brit looking to bounce back from a pair of decision defeats to Usyk while Wilder has been beltless since the second fight of his epic trilogy with Fury.
Wallin and Parker could prove stiff opponents, though, with the Swede coming off a six-fight win streak having only ever lost to Fury, while Parker has lost just one of his last 10 outings and looking to get back to the form that saw him hold the WBO belt between 2016 and 2018.
Some line-up #RiyadhSeason #DayOfReckoning pic.twitter.com/KTUdE0mrQC
— Matchroom Boxing (@MatchroomBoxing) November 15, 2023
The December card will also feature light-heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol defend his WBA belt against Lyndon Arthur, while Daniel Dubois will aim to bounce back from his controversial August loss to Usyk and set himself up for another shot at the heavyweight title by beating American Jarrell Miller.
Alongside Arthur, another Brit will get a shot at the heavyweight title as Ellis Zorro prepares to take on IBF cruiserweight champion Jai Opetaia, who brutally dispatched Jordan Thompson in four rounds in London in September in his first defence having beaten Maris Breidis to snatch the belt last year.
