ANTHONY JOSHUA and Dillian Whyte will renew their rivalry for a bitter heavyweight rematch.
AJ came out victorious in seven rounds in 2015, which came six years after he lost the original in the amateurs.
Anthony Joshua beat Jermaine Franklin in his last fightRichard Pelham / The Sun
Matthew Pover Matchroom BoxingDillian Whyte also beat Jermaine Franklin[/caption]
Joshua, 33, comes into the fight having returned with a victory over Jermaine Franklin, 29, in April.
And Whyte’s last bout was also against the American, edging out a disputed majority decision in November.
So it leaves Franklin in prime position to predict who will prevail between his two recent rivals.
He told iFL TV:“I think Joshua will beat Whyte. I don’t think it’ll be a hard fight for Joshua.
“It was a little harder for Joshua to punch me cause it’s harder for bigger guys to punch down than it is for shorter guys to punch up, but you know when you’re taller, some of those shots are easier to get off. Yeah, I think beats Dillian.”
Joshua heads into the fight knowing he risks losing a blockbuster against Deontay Wilder, 37, in December in Saudi Arabia.
And Eddie Hearn previously revealed his purse could be as much as £60m for the Middle East mega-bout.
But AJ must first beat Whyte, 35, or else the deal is off the table.
BETTING SPECIAL – BEST NO DEPOSIT CASINO OFFERS
Promoter Hearn told talkSPORT: “This one is wild because AJ has got the Wilder fight locked in for December.
“We had meetings last week with the Saudis. Obviously, that’s one of the biggest fights in boxing, and he wanted to fight in the interim.
“You know, he’s been working with Derrick James, he wanted to have that fight and he was insistent it was Dillian Whyte.
“I wasn’t over the moon because I know it’s dangerous. It’s a fight that is built off emotion, they don’t like each other.
“You saw what happened last time at the O2, it’s going to be an absolute firefight on August 12. That’s why it’s so dangerous.
“You’ve got that Deontay Wilder fight in December, he could’ve just waited and had an easy, gimme fight at the O2 – but he’s decided to roll the dice.”
TIMES NEWSPAPERS LTDDillian Whyte, promoter Eddie Hearn and Anthony Joshua in 2015[/caption] Read More