Promoter Eddie Hearn thinks Anthony Joshua will choose to steam straight into the rematch with Daniel Dubois instead of targeting Tyson Fury for his next fight in the first half of 2025.
Hearn believes that there’s a strong possibility that Fury will be beltless when he fights Joshua (28-4, 25 KOs) next year, and he’d rather have AJ go into that clash with the IBF title in his possession.
The Joshua-Fury fight would have more substance to it if at least one of them holds a world title, and Joshua has a better chance of being the one with a belt. Fury looked overmatched in his loss to Oleksandr Usyk last May, and the chances are high that he’ll lose the rematch on December 21st.
Hearn acknowledges that Joshua, 34, could lose the rematch against Dubois (22-2, 21 KOs), which would sink his career. But he feels that’s the position AJ is in right now, and he can’t avoid these important fights. To compete at the highest level, Joshua has no choice but to put his career on the line. He’s already had his four rebuilding fights, and he’s got to swim with the sharks now.
“I think if it was up to AJ, and ultimately it is, the answer is going to be an immediate rematch,” said Eddie Hearn to BoxNation about Anthony Joshua likely to take the immediate rematch with Daniel Dubois.
“I can’t see him doing anything else but to try and avenge that defeat. Obviously, he takes a lot of his advice from me, Ben, Freddie, and the whole team, and he’ll collate that advice, and he’ll make his own decision.”
Joshua needs a better game plan if he’s going to take the rematch with Dubois because it didn’t work last time for him to fight passively in the first round. Dubois pounced on AJ, hurting him with big shots and knocking him down with a right hand that he never recovered from. Joshua hasn’t said anything about wanting to sack the team, but he should consider dumping at least his trainer, Ben Davison.
“I feel like there’s a lot of positives from having six or seven weeks off and then getting back to work versus waiting for a fight [Oleksandr Usyk vs. Tyson Fury 2 rematch],” said Hearn. “What happens if that is delayed? Then, waiting to try and fight someone in July or August of next year.
“The activity has been really good for AJ, and I think that’s really helped him. I think that’s going to help him get back sooner rather than later. I don’t think he’s up for warmup fights. I think he’s up for the biggest fights out there, and that would definitely be a rematch with Daniel Dubois.”
Hearn isn’t saying how soon he would want Joshua to fight Dubois, but it would be better for it not to be too soon so he can have time to let his head clear from the hard punches he took. If Joshua goes into camp immediately, he might suffer concussions during training and then come into the rematch with Dubois half-stunned already.
“Maybe, but that’s where you’re at in your career,” said Hearn when asked if Joshua could be finished as a fighter if he loses the rematch against Dubois. “If you wait and you boxed Tyson Fury and you lost to him, is that the end of your career?”
As long as Joshua is fine with having his career on the line for the Dubois fight, it’s okay. He won’t go into the fight, not knowing what he’s risking.
“It’s [Fury] a fight for Joshua that is unlikely to carry a world championship,” said Hearn, making it clear that he expects Fury to lose the rematch with Oleksandr Usyk in December, leaving Tyson beltless when he faces Joshua.
“So for me, the key for AJ is he has a straight shot at the [IBF] world title. So, it’s going to be difficult for him to turn that down,” said Hearn.
