Anthony Joshua is reportedly being lined up for a dramatic return to the boxing ring before the end of 2025 \u2014 but the former two-time world heavyweight champion won\u2019t be the main event on his comeback night.<\/p>\n
The 36-year-old last fought in September 2024, when he faced Daniel Dubois at Wembley Stadium for the IBF Heavyweight title. That bout ended in disappointment for Joshua, who was stopped in the fifth round by his younger rival.<\/p>\n
His comeback was delayed after undergoing minor elbow surgery in June, with Joshua stressing the need to \u201cget my body right\u201d before making his return.<\/p>\n
Given his time out of action, many assumed the Watford-born star wouldn\u2019t fight again until 2026. However, promoter Eddie Hearn has now revealed that discussions are underway for Joshua to feature on a December card.<\/p>\n
Speaking to Boxing Social, Hearn said: \u201cThere will be no big-name fight this year.\u201d He added that Joshua could appear on the undercard of Craig Richards vs. Dan Azeez in Accra, Ghana, on December 20.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt wouldn\u2019t be a headline, it wouldn\u2019t be pay-per-view \u2014 it\u2019s just part of something that\u2019s already on sale,\u201d Hearn explained. \u201cThis is about development, staying active, and getting 100% ready for the big fights ahead. It\u2019s not about the money.\u201d<\/p>\n
However, there could be a twist to Joshua\u2019s plans, as YouTube star-turned-boxer Jake Paul is currently looking for a major opponent after his fight with Gervonta Davis fell through.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think Jake and AJ have spoken,\u201d Hearn told The Flash Knockdown. \u201cIf we\u2019re going to have a run-out fight, why not make it Jake Paul? There have been ongoing conversations. Nothing\u2019s close yet, but it\u2019s possible.\u201d<\/p>\n
Despite recent setbacks, Joshua remains determined to reclaim the world heavyweight crown for a third time. With a professional record of 28 wins and four defeats \u2014 including victories over Francis Ngannou, Joseph Parker, and Dillian Whyte \u2014 his potential return next month could mark the first step in another championship push.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Anthony Joshua is reportedly being lined up for a dramatic return to the boxing ring before the end of 2025 \u2014 but the former two-time world heavyweight champion won\u2019t be the main event on his comeback night. The 36-year-old last fought in September 2024, when he faced Daniel Dubois at Wembley Stadium for the IBF …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":54015,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-54014","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/eplbanter.com.ng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/mixcollage-05-feb-2025-10-20-am-603.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/eplbanter.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54014","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/eplbanter.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/eplbanter.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eplbanter.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/18"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eplbanter.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=54014"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/eplbanter.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54014\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":54016,"href":"https:\/\/eplbanter.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54014\/revisions\/54016"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eplbanter.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/54015"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/eplbanter.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=54014"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eplbanter.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=54014"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eplbanter.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=54014"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}