Eddie Hearn has revealed there are currently three men in the running to take on former heavyweight world champion, Anthony Joshua in his next outing.
Joshua will headline the iconic Wembley Stadium in September, as part of a Saudi sponsored Riyadh Season card put together by Turki Alalshikh in association with Hearn and Queensberry’s Frank Warren.
It will be the first time ‘AJ’ has boxed at the national stadium since his 2018 stoppage win over Alexander Povetkin, during one of his two reigns as a heavyweight titlist.
Following Daniel Dubois’s stunning win over Filip Hrgovic last week on the Matchroom vs Queensberry ‘5 vs 5’ show, it’s no secret that he is in pole position to land a big money showdown with Joshua in the autumn.
However, Hearn has stated that Zhilei Zhang and Joseph Parker were also in the running.
Daniel Dubois vs Filip Hrgović Fight Highlights | 5 vs 5: Queensberry vs Matchroom 🥊 pic.twitter.com/Io2wv0gL5X
— Boxing on TNT Sports (@boxingontnt) June 2, 2024
“From our point of view, the 44-year-old told Pro Boxing Fans on Wednesday, “if the world title is on the line against Daniel Dubois, he’s the frontrunner.
“If it’s not, then we’ll probably fight someone else.
“Zhilei Zhang, Joseph Parker. I don’t know, but the plan for us is to try and position ourselves or win the world heavyweight title and if that’s available against Daniel Dubois then I think that’s the right fight.
“But again, nothing’s been decided.”
Zhang also featured on last week’s show in Riyadh, where he produced a devastating fifth round knockout of Deontay Wilder, potentially ending the career of ‘The Bronze Bomber’.
WBO interim world champion Parker is in the form of his life, having scored back-to-back decision wins over Zhang and Wilder in his last two outings.
He and Joshua are no strangers, of course, having locked horns in a unification contest back in 2018 from which the Brit emerged with a unanimous decision victory.
Six years on however, both men are very different fighters and there would certainly be an appetite amongst fans to see them run it back.
Match ups with two of the division’s heaviest hitters in Dubois and Zhang would also be enticing, so it seems like the boxing world can expect to see Joshua in an entertaining contest come September regardless.
