“Bulgarian boxer Kubrat Pulev has stated that he will not relent in his pursuit of the world heavyweight championship title.
Pulev is the mandatory challenger for Joshua’s IBF title and had a bout planned for June 20.
However the Covid-19 pandemic has caused the bout to be postponed with a new date yet to be announced. In the absence of any sporting activities, fans have turned to participating in the Michigan Lottery with most of them making use of the bonus codes available to them which basically gives them multiple lottery tickets and also some signup bonuses to play further games.
This postponement has also led to talks within the boxing community that Pulev could be paid to step aside so Joshua could face Tyson Fury for the chance to unify the heavyweight belts.
Fury defeated Wilder in February in largely one sided fight. The bout was highly publicized and it sure lived up to the expectations of many fans.
According to Pulev, Joshua must either fight or vacate the IBF title. He believes that Joshua is trying to duck the fight by postponing the bout instead of fixing a new date and venue.
The Bulgarian is feared within the boxing community and there are fears within Anthony Joshua’s camp that he could derail the ultimate plan to face Fury for a unification bout.
There is also a backstory to Pulev’s fears as the Bulgarian was billed to face Joshua in 2017 but withdrew due to injury. He was also the mandatory challenger when Joshua lost to Andy Ruiz Jr in June 2019.
Joshua is currently the top dog in the heavyweight division holding the IBF, WBA and WBO belts and has recently spoken of his desire to face WBC champion Tyson Fury.
Fury in typical fashion replied that he couldn’t wait to win the belts from Joshua since he is the lineal champion following his defeat of Klitschko in 2017.
However the British boxers will have to wait for the super bout with both billed to face their challengers.
Fury is set to face Deontay Wilder for the third time when boxing returns following its shutdown because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Joshua will also have to defeat Pulev who has only suffered one defeat in his career to Vladimir Klitschko in 2014.
His record stands at 28 wins from 29 bouts, while Joshua has 23 wins from 24 bouts.
It remains to be seen what decision Joshua would take but boxing fans are anxiously waiting and it is high time the champ makes up his mind.
