Article first appeared on Bookmakers.com

There will be a moment on Saturday night, beneath the ‘big tent’ roof of the 02 Arena, London, when the bookmakers‘ favorite, and former two-time heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua will discover whether his appetite for boxing truly remains. The platitudes of those leaning from the windows of the gravy train will evaporate beneath the glare of the lights and he will be alone, the superficiality of his latest reinvention and the whispers of the fortune he has compiled questioning his desire. His magnificent physique will offer little beyond a chiseled defence against a tide of self-doubt and ebbing motivation but is still expected to prove sufficient to overcome Jermaine Franklin and secure a lucrative, perhaps era-defining fight with Tyson Fury. If such seemingly Utopian narratives are to be indulged. 

Fans hope Joshua will be able to rediscover a lost purpose and unfurl his natural, aggressive style from the layers of over-observed psycho-babble he has subverted it with. His opponent does not represent his toughest test, either proportionally or in terms of talent but such is the enigmatic form Joshua has displayed over the past four years, that every fight carries more risk than resumes and reputations insist they should.