Anthony Joshua starts Garden’s move back to boxing’s forefront

The Knicks and the Rangers aren’t using Madison Square Garden these days, which is why it will become t🔯he Mecca of Boxing again, starting June 1, when heavyweight champion of the United Kingdom makes his United States debut in the World’s Most Famous Aren🏅a.

A week later, former middleweight champion Gennady “GGG” Golovkin faces Steve Rolls in a non-title bout, and on June 15, Bellator 222 wil🌳l occupy the arena with a strong MMA lineup. Joshua, an Olympic Gold medal winner and owner of the WBO, IBF, and WBA heavyweight boxing titles, is gene☂rating the most excitement.

The unbeaten champion (22-0 with 21 KOs) will defend against challenger Andy Ruiz Jr. (32-1, 21 KOs) in a “Coming to America” attraction that should have the Gar🎐den buzzing.

“If you’re a sports fan, a heavyweight championship at Madison Square Garden should be the first thing on your bucket list,” said Joel Fisher, the Garden’s executive vice president of marquee events and operations. “It’s an event unlike any other, something that you’ll be♐ able to tell your children and grandchildren about. And with the debut of Joshua and the excitement it’s generating, it’s a bucket list item for anyone who is a sports fan.”

Joshua is part of the three-headed monster reviving the heavyweight division these days. Deontay Wilder, the WBC champion, flattened challenger Dominic Breazeale in one round last weekend at Barclays Center, while lineal champion Tyson Fury will take on Tom Schwarz on June 15 in Las Vegas. At some point, any combination of Wilder, Joshua and Fury will have to face each other and in some cases more than once, but for now ne♏xt weekend is all about Joshua playing the Garden.

His bright smile and cheerful ꦿper𝔍sonality have made him a huge star in the U.K. and fighting Ruiz is his first step in becoming a household name in the U.S. The Garden began courting a Joshua fight last year when he attended Saul “Canelo” Alvarez’s Garden debut against Rocky Fielding in December.

“We saw how popular Anthony was in the U.K. and around the world and we felt in order for him to solidify his legacy he had to fight in the United Sta💖tes,” Fisher said. “And🔜 the only place in the United States that would help him with all of that is Madison Square Garden in New York. When he saw the atmosphere at the Canelo fight, he made a decision that night his next fight was going to be at Madison Square Garden.”

A strong British contingent is expected to make the trip over to support Joshua, who is making the rounds to promote the bout with Ruiz of Imperial, Calif. Ruiz took the fight af𒊎ter Joshua’s original challenger Jarrell “Big Baby” Miller tested positive for perf𝔉ormance enhancing drugs. But this fight isn’t so much about the opponent as it is about Joshua fighting at the Garden.

“We’veℱ had a long distinguished history in the heavyweight division,” Fisher said. “That’s why we’re so excited about Joshua making his debut here. We just believe it will be another in a long line of historical fights that we’ve had here.”

The fight is also the first of a three-week Garden run for ꧂DAZN, the live streaming service that has rights to the Joshua, Triple-G and Bellator bouts. It also adds to a busy boxing schedule the Garden has had dating to March 18 of last year. The Golovkin-Rolls fight will be the 11th fight card in that span held in the big arena or the Garden Theater. The names include Terrance Crawford, Vasily Lomachenko, Daniel Jacobs, Golovkin, Canelo Alvarez, and Joshua.

“All of these fighters bring a different audience and that’s what makes it doable,” Fisher said. “They’re all just so popular in their own right and such gre𒈔at fighters that the true boxing fans just want to see them.”