Anthony Joshua Next Fight Rumors: Promoter Eddie Hearn Thinks Klitschko Will Trigger Rematch Clause and Fight Joshua This Fall
It's been weeks now since Anthony Joshua stopped Wladimir Klitschko in the 11th round of their fight at Wembley Stadium, but the International Boxing Federation (IBF), World Boxing Association (WBA) and International Boxing Organization (IBO) heavyweight champion still doesn't have an opponent for his next bout.
A number of high profile-challengers have thrown their names in the hat, but Joshua's promoter, Eddie Hearn, told the Independents' Declan Taylor that his fighter will probably have a rematch with Klitschko later this year.
"I believe Klitschko will go ahead with the rematch so we are looking at dates. The Principality Stadium is not really available in November because of rugby so 28 October is the option. Most of December is available but I don't really want to go that late," Hearn said during the interview.
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"For Cardiff that date is an option and also December but I don't really want to go into December so we are looking at the MGM in Las Vegas, China and Dubai as options too," he continued.
Both fighters suffered injuries during the fight, but they should be ready by October.
Staging the rematch at Wembley Stadium is not an option in the fourth quarter of the year because it's an open-air stadium, but the Principality Stadium (formerly Millennium Stadium) is an interesting option since it has retractable roof.
A rematch with Klitschko is going to be a little problematic for Joshua, though, because he may have to give up his IBF belt if he doesn't fight the organization's mandatory challenger, Kubrat Pulev. The same thing happened to Tyson Fury back in 2015 when he refused to face Vyacheslav Glazkov.
Joshua is willing to drop the belt if he has to, but Hearn said he has a good relationship with Pulev's promotional team, so perhaps they can come up with a compromise.
A rematch with Klitschko is definitely more interesting than a fight with Pulev.
