While it took Wilder eight rounds to finish Arreola, it was quite clear that even before the fight which took place at Legacy Arena in Birmingham, Alabama, the 30-year-old native of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, would have little problem beating Arreola based on their individual track records.
Arreola was a last minute substitute for Alexander Povetkin, who was set to face Wilder last May but the Russian challenger was tested positive for the banned substance that led to the cancellation of the fight.
After disposing Arreola, Wilder wasted no time in calling out Fury or Joshua in a unification fight before the end of the year.
“Of course I want the Furys, of course I want the Joshuas, but the question is, do they want me?” said Wilder after beating Arreola.
“My goal is to unify the division. I’m one of the baddest, hardest-hitting heavyweights in the business, so whoever’s got those belts, that’s who I want,” he added.
But now it seems Fury won’t be able to fight this year because he has yet to face Klitschko in a rematch. The fight was postponed to a later date due to Fury’s ankle injury. No specific date has been announced but the promoters are targeting the month of October this year.
With the unexpected development on Fury’s side, Wilder is better off pursuing a unification bout against Joshua, who is the current IBF heavyweight champion.
Joshua is fresh off a seventh round TKO win against Dominic Breazeale last June 25 at the O2 Arena in London, England.
Joshua is unbeaten in in 17 fights since turning pro in 2013. He has a 100 percent knock out rating having won all his pro fights via the short distance.
Wilder and Joshua are almost evenly matched with their individual height and reach nearly the same. Wilder stands 6’7″ with a reach of 83 inches while Joshua has height of 6′ 6″ with a reach of 82 inches. They are both orthodox fighters. Joshua is 26 while Wilder is 30 years old. Both are unbeaten in the pro careers.
In terms of fight exposure in their pro careers, Wilder has the edge having fought 37 times against Joshua’s own record of only 17 fights.
