Joe Joyce wants Anthony Joshua or Oleksandr Usyk fight at Emirates Stadium after mandatory status confirmed

Joe Joyce has been handed considerable extra incentive for his heavyweight clash with Carlos Takam this weekend.

‘The Juggernaut’ fights for the first time since his stunning November win over British rival Daniel Dubois on Saturday night as he takes on the battle-tested and durable Takam at Wembley Arena.

Joyce - who is also the reigning British, Commonwealth and European champion - was already set to defend his WBC Silver and WBO International belts in north-west London, but it’s now been confirmed that he will also be fighting to ensure the right to face the winner of the September showdown between Anthony Joshua and Oleksandr Usyk after being officially installed as the WBO’s new mandatory heavyweight challenger.

“Amazing news,” Joyce said after being informed of the development by promoter Frank Warren.

“It’s such a great opportunity. I just can’t wait to get in and beat Takam. So no mistakes, I just have to go in there and give it my all and get the job done.

“I have to deal with what’s in front of me. You can’t be thinking too far ahead because that’s when you end up getting caught.

“You have to deal with what’s in front of you and then you can move on to bigger and better things.”

Arsenal fan Joyce - wearing a new Gunners home shirt with the no1 on the back - was promoting his fight with former Joshua opponent Takam at Emirates Stadium when news of his confirmation as the first mandatory for the winner of Joshua vs Usyk emerged.

Provided he passes this weekend’s challenge, the 2016 Olympic silver medalist and 2014 Commonwealth Games champion wants to meet the winner of that showdown at the home of his boyhood club.

“The Emirates is an amazing stadium,” Joyce was quoted as saying by Warren.

“Joshua here would be a great one for the history books.”

A follow-up tweet from Warren read: “When they’re done with Spurs, The Juggernaut would like to invite Anthony Joshua or Alexander [Sic] Usyk to his patch… Let’s GO!”

Earlier on Tuesday, it was confirmed that Joshua’s latest WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, and IBO title defence against long-time no1 WBO contender and former undisputed cruiserweight champion Usyk would take place at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in front of a potential 60,000-strong crowd on September 25.

Joshua was originally supposed to face WBC champion Tyson Fury in a blockbuster all-British undisputed clash in Saudi Arabia in August, only for an arbitration hearing to rule that he has to face Deontay Wilder for a third time instead.

Fury and Wilder were supposed to lock horns in a trilogy fight in Las Vegas on the same night as Joyce-Takam, only for the bout to be pushed back to October 9 due to a Covid-19 outbreak in Fury’s camp.

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