Anthony Joshua vs. Joseph Parker “close” for March 31st in Cardiff

The heavyweight will-they-or-won’t-they love triangle between champions Anthony Joshua, Deontay Wilder, and Joseph Parker might be reaching a conclusion in the near future. Parker co-promoter Bob Arum tells The Ring that a fight between Joshua and Parker is so close to being signed for March 31st in Cardiff that it’s a “formality.”

Parker himself told Business Insider that the only remaining hurdle is the money split; he and his team want it 65/35 for Joshua, while the latter’s team wants 70/30.

Joshua (20-0, 20 KO) ended 2017 on a somewhat sour note, beating Carlos Takam by questionable stoppage. That’s not nearly enough to erase his earlier accomplishments, though, and his April victory over Wladimir Klitschko remains a Fight of the Year contender.

He owns the IBF and WBA “Super” titles.

WBO champ Parker (24-0, 18 KO) earned his biggest win to date three months ago with a competitive decision over Hughie Fury. He beat Andy Ruiz Jr. for the title last December, but lost quite a bit of steam thanks to his glorified sparring session against Razvan Cojanu.

If they do wind up signing this, it leaves Wilder free to take on Luis Ortiz, which seems like a satisfactory outcome for the fans. Grab those pens, boys.