Eddie Hearn drops Anthony Joshua injury update and reveals return fight plans

Daily Mirror

6 days ago

The two-time heavyweight world champion is hoping to return to competitive action later this year after undergoing successful elbow surgery
Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn has shared that his top client, Anthony Joshua, is plotting his next steps after a successful elbow operation.
The two-time heavyweight world champion has not stepped into the ring since his crushing knockout loss to Daniel Dubois last September. Initially, it seemed 'AJ' was gearing up for an immediate rematch with 'Triple D', but minor injuries from their first bout meant the 35-year-old was not ready for a quick return.
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The British boxer had planned a summer comeback, but an elbow injury delayed his return to full training. Now, post-surgery, Joshua is eyeing a return to the ring towards the end of the year, according to his promoter. "He's had the operation, which went very well, and now he's just sort of rehabbing it," Hearn told BoxingScene.
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"I believe about six weeks till he can punch again properly, and that kind of lends itself to a September, October, November fight. That gives us a chance to see what happens with Dubois against Usyk. That gives us a chance to see if Mr. Fury will ever return, and maybe something else. But he's definitely fighting this year and looking forward to it."
Tyson Fury retired for the fifth time in January following his second consecutive defeat to Oleksandr Usyk. However, Joshua hasn't given up on the prospect of a match with the former champion. 'AJ' remains sceptical about Fury's retirement being permanent and seems confident that their bout could still happen.
The 35-year-old recently shared a snap of himself watching Fury's fight on his private Snapchat, hinted at a future showdown with the 'Gypsy King', stating: "One of these days I'll be standing in the opposite corner. Ready and fully charged spiritually." However, Fury dealt another blow to his long-time rival by asserting he had nothing left to prove in the boxing ring. Speaking from Lake Como, he said: "I hear a lot of talk about the Gypsy King returning to boxing and I ask this question: for what? What would I return for? More belts? I've won 22 of them.
"I've been used, that's it, fair play to them, they got their use out of me. But I'm happy, I am happy, content with what I have achieved and accomplished. I've been around the world and back again. And this is what retirement looks like for the Gypsy King, not too shabby."
Fury added: 'I'm in no rush at all, to come back to boxing and get my face punched in. For what? What would I return for? I ask that question. I am retired and I am staying retired. I have nothing to prove to anybody and nothing to return for." The video was shared just days after he teased an imminent announcement hinting at a potential comeback. In an Instagram video alongside his father John Fury, the Gypsy King said: "Business meeting today, dad. En-route. Incoming, incoming."
Before dropping a hint to his fans, Fury treated them to a sneak peek inside the gym with his coach SugarHill Steward. "Just in the gym, happened to bump into somebody you might know," the Gypsy King teased in the video he shared. As the camera swivelled to capture his trainer's beaming face, SugarHill made no secret of the excitement in the air, declaring: "You know what time it is!" Closing out his social media share, the heavyweight champ dangled a tantalising teaser, saying simply but suggestively: "You know what's coming."