Joshua, Okolie plotting world title double on December

British stars of Nigerian parentage, Anthony Joshua and Lawrence Okolie, could both be in world title action on December 12 if plans currently in the pipeline come to fruition, reports worldboxingnews.net.

Joshua and Okolie are both set to face Kubrat Pulev and Krzysztof Glowacki, respectively, two weeks before Christmas. Promoter Eddie Hearn has penciled in the date in question for a show at The O2 in London.

If secured, the event could be one of the first in the United Kingdom to accommodate a larger portion of fans. Matchroom Boxing is seeking advice from officials over what kind of capacity from the 20,000 available they could fill by that time. At present, pilot schemes involving crowds at sports are on hold.

Some fans did attend events over the past few weeks, including a football match involving Chelsea and Brighton.

Boxing is yet to be part of any such test shows. But it’s hoped in three more months, England will be in a better position due to the pandemic measures taken now.

Yesterday, the government issued guidelines that they intend to keep in place for the foreseeable future, to keep the coronavirus from spreading out of control. If successful in the coming weeks, all sports will have the chance for some crowd presence from the end of October onwards.

Joshua vs. Pulev has a good chance of seeing a small percentage of the arena taken by seated supporters. The main event sees Joshua put his four world heavyweight title belts up for grabs in an IBF mandatory defense. Pulev steps up after initially becoming number one in 2017.

As for Okolie, the undefeated cruiserweight gets the chance at the WBO version after amassing a 14-0 record. The talented 200-pounder has sparred with Joshua in the past.

If confirmed this month, Matchroom will be able to plow forward with their most significant event of the year. This follows some lower-key shows in Eddie Hearn’s backyard. Several stars yet to feature in 2020 will be eyeing spots on the undercard.