With some potentially huge fights in the future, Anthony Joshua needed to clear a hurdle in the form of late-notice replacement Robert Helenius in London on Saturday night. Joshua was able to do just that in scoring a seventh-round knockout to potentially set up a fight with Deontay Wilder in January, though the action prior to the final punch may not have driven up the demand for that fight.
Joshua, fighting for the second time since losing his rematch with Oleksandr Usyk for the WBA, WBO and IBF heavyweight titles, was originally set to face former world title challenger Dillian Whyte. After failing a pre-fight drug test, Whyte was removed from the fight and Helenius was given the call days after winning a fight in Finland and less than one week ahead of Saturday's clash. That fight was Helenius' first since he was crushed by Wilder in one round in an October 2022 clash.
It was quickly apparent that Joshua was not looking to one-up Wilder's performance against Helenius, instead working behind a jab and little else in the opening rounds. On the occasions Joshua did land a solid right hand in the early rounds, he would back off rather than pursue a big flurry.
The fight fell into a battle mostly of jabs, and Helenius did do enough work that Joshua was left with a bloody nose and slight swelling around his left eye. But Joshua was always firmly in control of the action, even if that action was largely slow-paced and lacking in excitement.
Finally, in Round 7, Joshua fully committed to a right hand and ended the fight. With Helenius' back stuck to the ropes, Joshua threw a jab to the body before coming over the top with an overhand right that sent Helenius slumping to the canvas and ending the bout.
You do 𝙉𝙊𝙏 get up from those 😤#JoshuaHelenius | pic.twitter.com/1LHhhvr6We
— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) August 12, 2023
After the win, and a post-fight lap that saw Joshua celebrating with Conor McGregor, he addressed the claims he needed to impress against Helenius.
"Man, people need to leave me alone," Joshua said. "I do what I want. This is my time in this ring. People need to let me break a bit and let me keep doing what I do. ... He's got talent. I had to figure him out as a late replacement."
Joshua then avoided a question about whether the Wilder fight was up next, joking that his back was hurting from carrying the heavyweight division.
Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn was quick to insist that the plan for Joshua remained a fight with Wilder in his next outing, suggesting it was in the works for January moments after Joshua had said he was hoping to fight twice before the end of the year.
"Yes, it's the fight we want," Hearn said. "We have a three-fight plan, like it or not. It was Robert Helenius -- was supposed to be Dillian Whyte -- and then Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury. That's the ambition. Whether you back Josh and think he can do it or he can't, things have changed. He's now a mature heavyweight. I know everyone wants to see first, second, third round KOs, but against Helenius, he took his time and did it with one of the knockouts of the year. We believe he can go on and beat Deontay Wilder."
