Deontay Wilder confirmed in the early hours of Wednesday morning that he will face Luis Ortiz in a rematch in 2019.
That, as expected, all-but removes the possibility of the two heavyweight titlists sharing the ring later this year.
Anthony Joshua defends his WBO, WBA and IBF titles against Andy Ruiz Jr in his United States debut at Madison Square Garden this Saturday.
But he will face at least one interim fight after that before he gets the chance for an undisputed showdown with American knock-out specialist Wilder, who put Dominic Breazeale out cold earlier this month to defend his WBC strap.
Much to the frustration of fight fans, Joshua’s long-awaited showdown with Wilder could well have to wait until the summer of 2020 or even longer despite the desperation of fans to see the pair trade punches.
And long-time boxing expert Steve Bunce has revealed a statistic that will only anger fans even more.
Even if the pair come to an agreement to go head-to-head this time next year, it will still be the longest fans have ever had to wait for a title unification bout – in any weight class – according to Bunce.
Speaking on BBC 5 Live Sport’s boxing podcast, Bunce said: “We’re being teased with, ‘It might happen, it might not happen.’ Can I give you a quick stat?
“These two, Wilder and Joshua, have been world champions together for 37 months.
“If they fight it’s going to be another 12 months. That means they’ll be over 48 months, over four years sharing.
“I’ve done a bit of research, there isn’t another unification fight in history that has taken four years to make.
“You can’t say [Floyd] Mayweather and [Manny] Pacquaio because they weren’t [welterweight] champions at the same time for four years, they were champions on and off over a five, six-year period.
“There’s never been a situation like it in any weight in boxing since the organisation started back in the 60s.”
Wilder has not announced the date or venue he will rematch Ortiz – who he defeated in March 2018 – but is expected to face the Cuban southpaw in Los Angeles on September 7.
Provided he ousts Ruiz, Joshua’s pool of potential opponents includes British rival Dillian Whyte and mandatory IBF challenger Kubrat Pulev.
But 29-year-old Joshua has made it clear he is only focused on his long-term goal of becoming the first heavyweight king since Lennox Lewis in 2000.
Asked if he felt like he’d made it ahead of facing Ruiz in New York this weekend, Joshua said to BBC Radio 5 Live: “Yeah, it looks like I’ve made it but it’s only when I capture my hand on the last title – get this win on Saturday – then I can say I’ve actually made it.
“It’s been down to calculated steps. It’s been a good journey, a tough journey. On the sides of the journey there are billboards, then with time, two billboards but it’s all about winning in this sport.
“I haven’t put a foot wrong yet and I am not looking to put a foot wrong on Saturday either.”