SANDS OF TIME

AJ was at start of his boxing journey when he first went toe to toe with Wallin.. now he’s determined the Swede won t end it in desert

- CHRIS McKENNA

FROM Ally Pally in 2010 for an amateur bout with nothing but pride at stake to the lavish Kingdom Arena in Saudi Arabia with eight figures on the line.

Anthony Joshua against Otto Wallin was merely a checkpoint for the British heavyweight on his journey to the top over a decade ago.

Now as professionals tonight in the capital of Saudi Arabia, it's a critical fight that could open the door to a March date with Deontay Wilder or slam shut the Watford man's dreams of reaching the summit of the division again.

Joshua, 34, was barely two years into his boxing journey when he faced the Swedish southpaw at the famous Haringey Box Cup final at Alexandra Palace in 2010.

The bout with Wallin back then would have garnered some interest from amateur boxing aficionados with whispers of a potential star starting to get around the sport. In a ring not much bigger than a phonebox, Joshua was the victor for Finchley Boxing Club over a similarly fresh-faced Wallin.