Boxing
Is Froch right to destroy Fury and Joshua Hall-of-Fame claims?
Joshua vs. Prenga: Only on DAZN PPV - Saturday
Carl Froch has never held back when it comes to Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury .
The former world super-middleweight champion, now one of boxing’s most outspoken pundits, has once again scorched the two heavyweights as they prepare for a major weekend where any slip up could ruin their potential battle at the end of this year.
On Friday night, Fury will fight in Thailand, and he is not expected to be tested against previous world title challenger, Mariusz Wach, as he looks to sharpen his tools ahead of a likely Joshua fight.
The following night in Saudi Arabia, live on DAZN PPV and Ultimate Tier, Joshua's final rehearsal comes against Kristian Prenga as he looks to put more rounds in the tank following a lean spell of action that has only seen him fight once, a win over Jake Paul, since losing to Daniel Dubois in September 2024.
Why Anthony Joshua knows he will beat Tyson Fury
With the feuding stars in the headlines once more, their careers and futures have come under scrutiny with Froch even claiming that neither man is worthy of reaching boxing’s Hall of Fame.
Froch gives it to Joshua and Fury
“Eddie Hearn once said Joshua should be in the Hall of Fame because of what he’s done for boxing. I disagree. The International Boxing Hall of Fame should be based on results, who you beat and who beat you,” said Froch when speaking to Betpack.com.
“Yes, Joshua is a two-time heavyweight champion, but he’s also been flattened a few times. You have to be realistic. I don’t think he gets in.
"Tyson Fury hasn’t got enough names on his record either. His biggest wins are Wladimir Klitschko and Deontay Wilder, and he has now lost twice to Usyk.
"Where are all the other significant wins on Tyson Fury’s career that put green ticks in all the boxes? There aren’t any.
“So unfortunately, they won’t be joining the Cobra [Froch himself] anytime soon, or Roberto Durán, Sugar Ray Leonard, Muhammad Ali, Roy Jones Jr, Bernard Hopkins, Floyd Mayweather and the other names in the upper echelons of boxing.”
When analysing the records of both fighters, Froch does have a small case when putting Joshua and Fury side by side with the names that Froch has mentioned, but even Froch’s ledger falls way short when comparing him with those same fighters.
After winning his first world title in 2008 against Jean Pascal, Froch still couldn't claim to be the best in his division, and that’s exactly what Fury was for the best part of a decade, albeit with nearly three years out due to personal issues.
When beating Wladimir Klitschko in 2015, Fury became the lineal heavyweight champion and that victory over Klitschko in Germany, a monumental upset at the time, on paper, is better than any achievement Froch ever secured inside the ring.
Froch’s run once champion brought incredible risk, but he navigated those tests impressively. However, convincing losses to Mikkel Kessler and Andre Ward prevented him from ever calling himself the super-middleweight division's best fighter despite how entertaining his fights were and how admirable his willingness to take on the best was.
Fury would follow up his win over Klitschko with an incredible trilogy over Deontay Wilder when he would stop the heavy-handed American twice, and this was followed up with comfortable successes against Dillian Whyte and Derek Chisora.
Two losses to Oleksandr Usyk may have hurt Fury’s reputation ever so slightly, but the same Usyk has been mentioned in the same breath as Ali, Mike Tyson, Lennox Lewis, and Evander Holyfield, and their losses never stopped them from receiving their flowers long into retirement.
With Joshua, the argument from Froch can probably be presented with some more conviction, but still, what else could Joshua do that would make his incredible career standout even more?
An Olympic champion, World silver medallist, two-time heavyweight champion, and undoubtedly the man who spearheaded a phenomenal rise for British boxing where stadium fights became the norm, with some assistance from Froch.
Joshua has been the face of British boxing for so long
From an in-ring perspective, some glaring holes exist in Joshua’s record, but reigning as champion twice whilst disposing of Klitschko, Whyte, Joe Parker, and Alexnader Povetkin is still worth celebrating despite being offset by brutal losses to Andy Ruiz and Daniel Dubois.
But the title of the hall, one focused on fame rather than accomplishments, is what helps Joshua massively and his contributions to boxing, especially in Britain, contain major value.
His battles with Klitschko and Dubois were worthy of fight of the year awards, as was his bout with Ruiz which headlined Madison Square Garden on Joshua’s American debut.
Joshua was a box office phenomenon whose name on a poster, without an opponent, could sell out any stadium in Britain, and those factors play a big part in assisting his entry.
For now, Joshua and Fury’s focus is on each other, but when their eligibility to the Hall of Fame comes around a few years from now, Froch’s original forecast on their inclusion could look spectacularly misguided.
Joshua vs. Prenga - exclusively on DAZN PPV
Watch Anthony Joshua versus Kristian Prenga this Saturday, July 25, as part of a huge 24 hours of boxing on DAZN PPV.
Buy as a one-off PPV or included along with Spence Jr. vs. Tszyu on the same night, and Moses Itauma vs. Hrgovic (Aug 29) and Canelo vs. Mbilli (Oct) PPVs, with a DAZN Ultimate Tier subscription.
