TheCable

Deontay Wilder says Anthony Joshua lacks the confidence to fight him.

He said the heavyweight champion is being milked like a cow by Eddie Hearns, his promoter.

Joshua is presently dominating the heavyweight division, and he is expected to face Wilder in a unification bout.

But speaking with BBC, Wilder said: “I don’t believe Hearn wants this fight at all.

“Joshua is like a cow, Eddie Hearn is milking him for every dollar. There have been no negotiations at all, no deal has been offered.

“But the world wants to see me and Joshua get in the ring.

“I don’t think Joshua has enough confidence in himself to fight me. It’s all on them. If he really wants it, he can make it happen.

“I see the Parker v Joshua fight going into the later rounds. I like Parker’s movement.”

“With Joshua’s big frame and being muscular, that’s OK to look the part but can he get out of the way of Parker’s punches and maintain his stamina holding all that?”

Reacting, Hearns said Joshua is ready to fight any boxer, but urged Wilder to focus on beating Luis Ortiz before facing his client.

“Deontay Wilder has tried to sell his whole fight on Anthony Joshua – he should worry about Luis Ortiz,” he said.

“Anthony will fight anyone and, as we have stated a thousand times, he wants to be the undisputed champion.

“If he beats Joseph Parker then he just needs one more belt. Wilder doesn’t have a promoter so is on a one-man salesman mission – get your head on Ortiz, let us deal with Parker then join us back in the real world and this fight will get made very quickly.”