Deontay Wilder is eager to salvage his long-awaited fight against Anthony Joshua after joining Eddie Hearn’s roster of fighters. The heavyweight rivals were finally set to clash in March, but Wilder’s defeat to Joseph Parker in November put those plans on hold. Now, Wilder is set to make his return on June 1st in Saudi Arabia against Zhilei Zhang, in an unexpected turn of events. He has been selected as part of Hearn’s team of five fighters who will face off against Frank Warren’s picks. Meanwhile, Joshua is scheduled to return in September at Wembley Stadium, marking Saudi boxing chief Turki Alalshikh’s first venture into the UK. There is speculation that Joshua could face Tyson Fury, but the Gypsy King must first defeat Oleksandr Usyk on May 18th, with a rematch already contracted. Wilder remains hopeful that he can face AJ should he emerge victorious against the 40-year-old Zhang. His manager, Shelly Finkel, told SunSport: “It’s speculation, but if everything goes OK on June 1st like we hope and expect and that’s brought to us, we’re totally open.” Fury, 35, and Usyk, 37, are set to meet in the first-ever four-belt unification fight in the heavyweight division next month. Fury has ruled out a summer showdown with Joshua, 34, opting instead to honor a potential October rematch with Usyk. Wilder, 38, is now positioned as a possible replacement for Joshua in the Wembley showdown, although Finkel admits that the idea has not yet been discussed with Hearn. He said: “Look, I know why it happened, but we didn’t believe that Deontay would lose to Parker, so you can’t get too far ahead of yourself. “Now we have a big fight in front of us, and as long as he does what he’s supposed to, hopefully that’ll be history, and then we’ll go forward. “But no, there hasn’t been any direct conversation.” Joshua and Hearn have endured years of a tumultuous relationship with Wilder and Finkel, with repeated failed attempts to organize the fight. However, the Saudis played a pivotal role in brokering a deal before Wilder’s shock loss to Parker. This may have paved the way for Hearn to turn to the former WBC champion when he needed a heavyweight to face Warren’s fighters. The fight against Zhang could provide Wilder with an opportunity to redeem himself at the scene of his most recent defeat, just seven months after that setback. Finkel added: “He knows what happened, he knows why it happened. He’s not going to let that happen again. “Zhang is not someone you can play around with; it’s a fight that if you’re going to beat this guy, you’ve got to hurt him early and stop him from being too aggressive.
Wilder Eyes AJ Rematch After Joining Hearn’s Roster
