ANTHONY Joshua’s illustrious career is winding to a close and with that, the aftereffects from his damaging fifth-round stoppage defeat by Daniel Dubois last September continue.
Dubois, eight years his junior, produced a career-best display as a record 96,000 sell-out crowd watched him headline the Riyadh Season: Wembley Edition card and flourish in the underdog role with aplomb.
Having won the interim title with an eighth-round stoppage win over then-unbeaten 17-0 Croatian heavyweight Filip Hrgovic three months prior, two-division undisputed titlist Oleksandr Usyk (23-0, 14 KOs) relinquished the IBF strap later that month as a “present” so Joshua-Dubois was for the full version.
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Dubois was upgraded, their all-British showdown set and the younger man made that first world title defence one he’ll never forget, scoring four knockdowns in five rounds to prompt another inquest into a baffling Joshua performance given his steady rebuild in the 18 months leading up to that night.
An immediate rematch with revised contractual terms was welcomed by Dubois and his promoter, Queensberry chief Frank Warren. Hearn and team Joshua walked back their eagerness to settle the score as time wore on, aware their two-time unified champion would’ve needed to recuperate fully while Dubois wanted to stay active.
Six months on, the update is an uncomfortable one.
Talking to BoxingScene on the eve of their latest show, headlined by Ammo Williams vs. Patrice Volny, Matchroom chief Eddie Hearn shared an unexpected injury update when assessing the 35-year-old’s next fight options.
“He’s pretty relaxed, but I’ll be honest, I think the only fights that really get his juices flowing are Dubois and Tyson Fury. Doesn’t mean he won’t fight someone else, but he’s beaten Joseph Parker already, Agit Kabayel’s on a great run but if you’re AJ, can you get yourself up for that? I don’t know.”
Usyk has this week been ordered to make a mandatory defence against interim champion Parker, who scored a second-round stoppage win over late-replacement Martin Bakole after Dubois’ fight week virus forced him to withdraw 48 hours before their proposed IBF world title clash in Riyadh last month.
Kabayel (26-0, 18 KOs) won the WBC interim title earlier that night, climbing off the canvas to stop Zhilei Zhang with a sixth-round body shot knockout.
Hearn said Joshua “won’t be able to punch again or train properly for eight-to-ten weeks” after sustaining an unspecified injury, before insisting a long-awaited clash against Tyson Fury was the most likely scenario while naming him and Dubois as the two “that light the fire” within his fighter to resurface again.
If the 2012 Olympic champion is unable to punch or train properly as a result of said injury, he’ll subsequently need a longer training camp on his return, meaning any mooted comeback is unlikely until August or later.
Fury (34-2-1, 24 KOs) again announced his retirement from the sport after a second decision defeat by Usyk during their Riyadh rematch on December 22, though many believe it’s inevitable the Morecambe man will return once more.
