Kingsley Ibeh: Let me fight Anthony Joshua in Nigeria
The man who could next face Anthony Joshua in the ring has called for the bout to take place in Nigeria.
Kingsley Ibeh is one of the fighters who could take on Joshua – a man he has described as his idol – next year, with Ghana and Nigeria seen as potential locations to host the fight.
Ibeh is on a run of 11 consecutive wins with an overall record of 16-2-1 and could face a Joshua who is heading towards retirement, though fans are still calling for a Battle of Britain bout between him and Tyson Fury.
“We need the right platform and the right opponent to make a statement with [in Africa] and there’d be no better one than AJ,” Ibeh told Sky Sports.
“That would definitely be a dream come true. That would be amazing.
“I would definitely stop him, no questions about that, it’s going to come down to how soon or how quickly it goes.”
Joshua in Nigeria
Joshua last entered the ring last year at Wembley Stadium, where he was knocked out in the fifth round against Daniel Dubois in a bout for the IBF heavyweight title. It took his record to 28-4.
His promoter, Matchroom’s Eddie Hearn, said Joshua and Fury will need to fight each other before one of them challenges Oleksandr Usyk to a trilogy fight.
“He’s a competitor just like AJ, the only person that’s beat Tyson Fury is Oleksandr Usyk and he’s beat him twice and he’s beat him fair and square,” he said.
“Two good fights, two competitive fights. Same with AJ. First fight was a bit wider, second fight was very competitive. AJ would love to fight Usyk again. But he also understands it’s not really a fight he can call for just yet because he’s coming off a defeat and he’s lost to him twice before.
“Just like the reality is Tyson Fury’s coming off two defeats. The trilogy being 2-0 down is not really something that happens a lot.”
Added Ibeh: “It doesn’t matter where it is, I’m ready.
“Anywhere. It doesn’t matter if it’s in the UK. I would love to dance with him in the O2 Arena.”