Anthony Joshua makes his return to the heavyweight boxing scene on Saturday night when he takes on Jermaine Franklin at the O2 Arena in London.
It will be Joshua’s first fight since losing twice to Oleksandr Usyk after first losing his unified heavyweight titles to the Ukrainian at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium before failing to regain them in last year’s rematch in Saudi Arabia.
Now 33, Joshua is into his 10th year as a professional and is the overwhelming favourite with UK bookmakers to get back to winning ways in this contest. His opponent Franklin recently went 12 rounds with British heavyweight Dillian Whyte, controversially losing a majority decision at Wembley Arena.
There will be plenty of betting interest in this heavyweight clash, just as there always is any time Joshua steps inside the ring. There will be plenty wanting to know how to watch Joshua vs Franklin, as well as how to bet on it. Below, we have found the best Joshua vs Franklin betting sites ahead of this contest.
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Best Boxing Betting Sites
William Hill
William Hill is a top destination for boxing punters across the UK thanks to its fantastic offers at the time of big fights. Expect odds boosts around this contest, as well as the opportunity to claim their bet £10 get £30 welcome offer, which can be redeemed on this fight. In additon, William Hill also has a 25/1 Joshua or 175/1 Franklin new customer offer available.
CLAIM WILLIAM HILL OFFER HERE
Register your William Hill account through the William Hill website or app using the promo code R30. Once your account is registered, using funds from your main account balance place a bet with a minimum stake of £10 on odds of 1/2 (1.5) or greater. Free bets will be credited as 3 x £10 denominations once the qualifying bet has settled.
bet365
Another big name in UK sports betting is bet365, who have a bet £10 get £30 welcome offer of their own. bet365 is renowned for producing some of the most competitive odds from bookmakers across all sports, ensuring its customers always have good value for their selections and wagers.
CLAIM BET365 OFFER HERE
New Customers only. Bet £10* & Get £30* in Free Bets. Sign up, deposit between £5* and £10* to your account and bet365 will give you three times that value in Free Bets when you place qualifying bets to the same value and they are settled. Free Bets are paid as Bet Credits. Min odds/bet and payment method exclusions apply. Returns exclude Bet Credits stake. T&Cs, time limits & exclusions apply.
Betfred
New customers at Betfred can claim their generous welcome offer of bet £10 get £40 ahead of Joshua vs Franklin this weekend. The welcome offer sets the tone well for this bookmaker’s generosity, who have some of the best promotions for existing customers across their selection of sports and events.
CLAIM BETFRED OFFER HERE
New 18+ UK customers only. Register using the promo code WELCOME40, deposit and place first bet of £10+ on Sports (cumulative Evens+) within 7 days of registration. First bet must be on Sports. £30 in Free Bets and £10 in Free Spins (50x20p) credited within 10 hours of bet settlement. Free Bet stakes are not included in any returns. Bonuses have a 7-day expiry. Payment restrictions apply. SMS verification and/or Proof of I.D and address may be required. Full T&Cs apply.
Preview
Saturday’s fight night has been dubbed as ‘a new dawn’ for the Brit, who is fighting without a world title on the line for the first time since December 2015. Now a decade into his professional career, Joshua is entering a new phase as he begins the journey of attempting to become a three-time heavyweight champion.
Despite improvements in his second performance against Usyk, AJ ran out of steam in the final three rounds against the relentless Ukrainian who snatched the fight away on the scorecards in the championship rounds. Though some would’ve liked to have seen Joshua let his hands go more in the contest, it’s fair to surmise that Usyk simply has his number from a technical standpoint.
Losing three of his last five professional fights, there have been questions over whether Joshua still has the same hunger and if his first defeat to Andy Ruiz has left a penetrable doubt in his own mind. Now working under new trainer Derrick James — who has Errol Spence Jr. amongst others in his stable — it is down to Joshua to rediscover that ruthless nature
As for Franklin, this is a huge step up from the levels that he has operated at for much of his career. The American earned this fight off the back of his impressive performance against the aforementioned Whyte but previously had a record made up of relatively unknown fighters.
A 7/1 underdog with some UK betting sites, it would be an enormous upset if Franklin was able to defeat Joshua.
Anthony Joshua Record
Anthony Joshua has a professional record of 24-3 (22 KOs) to his name. Joshua is a two-time heavyweight champion of the world and boasts victories over the likes of Wladimir Klitschko, Joseph Parker, Alexander Povetkin and Andy Ruiz Jr.
Jermaine Franklin Record
Jermaine Franklin has a professional record of 21-1 (14 KOs). He suffered his first professional defeat against Dillian Whyte in his previous bout, with the biggest win of his career to date coming against fellow American Rydell Booker.
Prediction
This is a good comeback fight for Joshua against an opponent who caused plenty of issues to a fellow British heavyweight in Whyte last time out. We expect Joshua to get the job done at the O2 Arena to set up bigger fights later this year.
Anthony Joshua to win in rounds 1-6 @ 11/8 with William Hill*
*Odds subject to change.