Fresh from his tenth-round stoppage of Carlos Takam in Cardiff, Anthony Joshua is already setting his sights on both Deontay Wilder and Joseph Parker for 2018.
Joshua retained his WBA and IBF belts with victory against Takam on Saturday - and told the BBC that he now wants Wilder’s WBC belt and Parker’s WBO title next year.
He said: “The possibilities are bubbling nicely in the distance. I’m not worried about 2018, because of the potential possibilities to come. I want the other two belts out there, whether it’s Wilder first or Parker.”
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.
Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.
Latest Videos FromThe Week
Meanwhile, Joshua revealed that he got a pep talk from Manchester United football star Zlatan Ibrahimovic ahead of his fight on Saturday. The Swede is known for his supreme confidence and gave Joshua some pointers on talking himself up.
Joshua told Sky Sports: “Zlatan loves his boxing and his mindset is phenomenal, but he picked me up on something I said after my fight with Wladimir Klitschko earlier in the year. He pointed out that I’d said, ‘I’m not perfect, but I’m trying.’ Then he said, ‘No, no no. What you must is say is, ‘I am perfect and I’m not trying.’”
Meanwhile, Ibrahimovic joked: “He is not as good at boxing as I am at football... but he’s getting there.”
Wozniacki ends ‘amazing’ year on a high
Caroline Wozniacki won the WTA Finals after beating Venus Williams 6-4, 6-4 in Singapore.
The Dane has had to deal with a number of injuries, and at one point slipped to 74th in the world rankings, but she has fought back to claim the biggest victory of her career.
According to the BBC, Wozniacki, who had previously lost seven matches against Williams, said: “I am so happy I managed to win in the end. Eight is my lucky number. If I was going to beat her [Williams] once in my career, it had to be today.
“I couldn’t be happier right now. It’s been an amazing year. Last year was tough with injuries but I fought my way back and to stand here and win the title means a lot to me.”
In men’s tennis, Roger Federer won the Swiss Indoors title with a 6-7 (5-7), 6-4, 6-3 victory over Juan Martin del Potro in Basel, Switzerland.
Casey wants Ryder Cup return
English golfer Paul Casey will return to the European Tour in the hope of getting selected for next year’s Ryder Cup.
Casey plays on the PGA Tour in the US, which means he has not been eligible for Ryder Cup selection. But with France hosting the next tournament, in 2018, Casey wants a chance to play for Thomas Bjorn’s European side.
“I want to play another Ryder Cup,” Casey told the BBC. “That’s why I need to do this. But it’s not just the Ryder Cup. What excites me more is the role I can play supporting the young guys.”
Meanwhile, Justin Rose capitalised on Dustin Johnson’s final-round collapse to win the WGC-HSBC Champions title in Shanghai.
Going into the final round, Johnson was eight shots clear of Rose, but the American’s five-over 77 gave Rose the chance to catch him.
Rose carded a five-under 67 to win by two shots. He said: “It’s unbelievable. It’s been a long time since I’ve won, or at least it feels like that. I’ve won every year since 2010, if you include the Olympics last year. I’ve left it late this year but it feels amazing.”
