Nigerian-born British heavyweight boxer Anthony Joshua has been given a strict 48-hour ultimatum to agree to a highly anticipated rematch against Daniel Dubois, scheduled for February.
Not accepting the offer would mean Anthony Joshua would lose his chance to regain the championship belts he lost after a shock defeat to the young heavyweight in September at Wembley Stadium.
In that shocking fight, Dubois, who is only 27 years old, sent Joshua to the canvas four times before his corner decided to throw in the towel during the fifth round. This defeat for Joshua was particularly heartbreaking as it occurred in front of a massive crowd of 96,000 fans at Wembley.
Initially, plans had been set for a rematch to take place in Saudi Arabia next February. However, Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn has expressed concern that the timeline for a rematch may be too ambitious given the circumstances surrounding Joshua’s previous performance.
Frank Warren, Dubois’s promoter, is pushing for a quick resolution and has made it clear that if Joshua does not respond within the next 48 hours, a rematch would likely be off the table.
Warren expressed urgency when speaking to iFLTV, stating, “Unless AJ contacts us in the next 48 hours, yes,” in response to whether the rematch was in jeopardy.
Warren is eager to announce the fight and hopes to have clarity tomorrow, even hinting that there may not be any progress on the matter until at least another week after that.
Meanwhile, Barry Hearn, the father of Joshua’s promoter, offered his perspective on the impending rematch. He believes that with a different strategy, Joshua could be successful against Dubois in a second meeting.
However, he also warned against hasty decisions and advocated a more measured approach. “I think Dubois is dangerous and will have a lot of confidence after the last job. “I still think AJ would probably beat him in a rematch if he boxed differently, but that’s just my opinion,” he told The Mirror.
<
