Dennis Hobson column: AJ's opponent was the weakest heavyweight I've ever seen

By The Newsroom
Published 25th Apr 2016, 20:00 BST
Anthony Joshua in South ShieldsAnthony Joshua in South Shields
Anthony Joshua in South Shields
Anthony Joshua's world title-opponent turned out to be pretty dreadful. Is AJ anywhere near elite status?

That fight told us nothing. AJ got exposed against Dillian Whyte and if Whyte had better conditioning it could have got more interesting. On paper it says he KO’d Whyte but it was exhaustion that finished Whyte off. Joshua is an exceptional talent but he hasn’t proved himself as he hasn’t fought any marquee names yet. We’ve had some weak heavyweight champions over the years but Charles Martin was the weakest I’ve seen. His shorts didn’t even fit him properly! He wouldn’t win a domestic title in Britain.

Joshua needs to consolidate as champion, and he’ll have a mandatory coming up in the next nine months. I’d try and get him another couple of fights to establish himself at that level. If he were to fight Tyson Fury tomorrow, my money would be on Fury; he knows how to win at the top level.