Bookmakers made Zhilei Zhang a slight favorite against Anthony Joshua in a potential future clash between the pair, when they last released odds on January 14, 2025.
He is currently 17/20 (-120) to win the clash outright, while you can get 1/1 (+100) on Anthony Joshua if you fancy the slight upset.
That means that oddsmakers think there is 52% chance of Zhang winning while giving Joshua a 48% chance.
Zhang opened as the favorite at 17/20 (-120).
Joshua opened at 10/11 (-110) which has shorten by -109/100 (+90).
The fight would be scheduled for 12 rounds in the Heavyweight division, which means both fighters don't have to make any weight limit.
Joshua vs Zhang Head To Head
Anthony Joshua would step into the ring with a record of 28 wins, 4 losses, and 0 draws, 25 of those wins coming by way of knockout.
Zhilei Zhang would make his way to the ring with a record of 27 wins, 2 losses and 1 draw, with 22 of those wins by knockout.
The stats suggest Joshua would have a slight advantage in power over Zhang, with a 89% knockout percentage compared to Zhang's 81%.
Anthony Joshua is the younger man by 6 years, at 35 years old.
Joshua has a 4-inch reach advantage.
Anthony Joshua fights out of the orthodox stance, while Zhilei Zhang is a southpaw.
Joshua is currently the more experienced professional fighter, having had 2 more fights, and made his debut in 2013, 10 months earlier than Zhang, whose first professional fight was in 2014. He has fought 57 more professional rounds, totaling 167 compared to Zhang's 110.
Anthony Joshua goes into the fight ranked number 6 by the WBC, 8 by the WBO, 8 by the IBF, and 7 by The Ring at heavyweight.
Zhilei Zhang is currently ranked number 8 by the WBA, 3 by the WBC, 1 by the WBO, and 4 by The Ring in the Heavyweight division.
Joshua vs Zhang betting form
Joshua has beaten 4 of his last 5 opponents, stopping 3 of them, going the distance once.
In his last fight, he lost to Daniel Dubois on September 21, 2024, by knockout in the 5th round in their IBF World Heavyweight championship fight at Wembley Stadium, London, United Kingdom. He was a 7/4 (+180) underdog going into the contest.
Prior to that, he had beaten Francis Ngannou on March 8, 2024, by knockout in the 2nd round at Kingdom Arena, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He was a 2/5 (-250) favorite going into the contest.
Going into that contest, he had won against Otto Wallin on December 23, 2023, by technical knockout in the 5th round at Kingdom Arena, Riyadh. He was a 2/7 (-340) favorite going into the contest.
Before that, he had beaten Robert Helenius on August 12, 2023, by knockout in the 7th round at O2 Arena, Greenwich, United Kingdom. He was a 1/16 (-1700) favorite going into the contest.
He had defeated Jermaine Franklin on April 1, 2023, by unanimous decision in their 12 round contest at o2 Arena, London. He was a 1/14 (-1400) favorite going into the contest.
Zhilei Zhang has stopped 3 of his last 5 opponents.
In his last fight, he won against Deontay Wilder on June 1, 2024, by technical knockout in the 5th round at Kingdom Arena, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He was a 4/5 (-130) favorite going into the fight.
Prior to that, he had been beaten by Joseph Parker on March 8, 2024, by majority decision in their WBO Interim World Heavyweight championship fight at Kingdom Arena, Riyadh. He was a 17/10 (+170) underdog going into the fight.
Going into that contest, he had won against Joe Joyce on September 23, 2023, by knockout in the 3rd round in their WBO Interim World Heavyweight championship fight at OVO Arena Wembley, London, United Kingdom. He was a 4/5 (-130) favorite going into the fight.
Before that, he had defeated Joe Joyce on April 15, 2023, by technical knockout in the 6th round in their WBO Interim World Heavyweight championship fight at Copper Box Arena, London. He was a 6/1 (+540) underdog going into the fight.
He had lost to Filip Hrgovic on August 20, 2022, by unanimous decision in their 12 round contest at Jeddah Superdome, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Who's been more active?
If you think ring rust and activity is a big factor in this fight, Anthony Joshua has been fighting more than Zhilei Zhang.
Anthony Joshua last fought 10 months ago, while Zhilei Zhang's last outing was 1 year, 1 month and 20 days ago.
Joshua's last 5 fights have come over a period of 2 years, 3 months and 20 days, which means he has been fighting approximately every 5 months and 17 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 31 rounds, meaning that they have lasted 6.2 rounds on average.
Zhang's last 5 fights have come over a period of 2 years, 11 months and 1 day, meaning he has been fighting on average every 7 months and 1 day. In those fights, he fought a total of 38 rounds, meaning that they have lasted 7.6 rounds on average.
