ONLY WAY IS ESSEX

AJ is the hottest ticket in sport as he sells record 70,000 for fight in Cardiff

ANTHONY JOSHUA has been hailed as the biggest draw in world boxing after a record 70,000 tickets were snapped up for his clash with Kubrat Pulev.

GENNADY GOLOVKIN claims his showdown with Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez will go down in history like Leonard-Hagler.

WBC, WBA Super and IBF middleweight king Golovkin (left) faces Canelo in Las Vegas on Saturday in the division’s most-anticipated fight since its halcyon days in the 1980s. “This will be like a history fight, like Sugar Ray Leonard versus Marvin Hagler,” said unbeaten Golovkin of Kazakhstan.

“The middleweight division has a long story. Right now I think we can write new stories.”

The fight will be shown live on BoxNation Box Office. ESSEX moved ever closer to their first Championship title for 25 years after dominating at Edgbaston, while Lancashire all but blew up in Taunton.

Varun Chopra (right) came within two runs of a hundred against his old county as Essex declared with a 168-run lead over WARWICKSHIRE.

Alastair Cook has been given the green light to play in Essex’s final two matches of the season, but the job could well be done by then. Should they go on to win the match, they will need LANCASHIRE to lose to SOMERSET and, after being dismissed for only 133 and asked to follow on, that could just happen. Spinner Jack Leach claimed 5-47, which should help Somerset’s bid to avoid relegation. Champions MIDDLESEX could soon be favourites to go down as rain halted their match with HAMPSHIRE.