IBF interim heavyweight champion Daniel Dubois’ promoter, Frank Warren, hopes Anthony Joshua will choose to face his fighter on September 21st at Wembley Stadium.
Joshua’s Camp Remains Tight-Lipped
Joshua (28-3, 25 KOs) and his promoter, Eddie Hearn, haven’t said whether they’ll take the fight with Dubois (21-2, 20 KOs) after watching him defeat fellow Matchroom fighter Filip Hrgovic by an eighth-round TKO last Saturday night in Riyadh.
Hearn says he wants to wait and see if Dubois’ IBF interim title will be upgraded to the full one before he decides whether to potentially pursue that option for Joshua’s next fight on September 21st.
The other two fighters that Joshua could possibly fight in September are Zhilei Zhang or Joseph Parker. Zhang is coming off a fifth-round knockout win over Deontay Wilder last Saturday night.
There would be more interest from British boxing fans in seeing Joshua fight Zhang than Parker, who he has already beaten and fights in a highly defensive style now.
“I think box office is that fight. Those two guys are two Brits. If we can make this in September, it makes it a no-brainer, doesn’t it?” said promoter Frank Warren to Secondsout, talking about a fight that he’s eager to see take place on September 21st between IBF interim heavyweight champion Daniel Dubois and Anthony Joshua at Wembley Stadium.
“They’re two massive big punchers. Everybody knows who they are, but I can’t determine what AJ wants to do. That’s up to him. This is professional boxing. We’ll let the fans decide. Ask them who they feel he should fight,” said Warren.
Did Dubois Frighten Away Joshua?
Dubois may have scared away Joshua and Hearn with his performance because he looked formidable, especially with the way he wore down and stopped the previously unbeaten Hrgovic.
The shots that Dubois walked through to win that fight would have likely knocked Joshua out many times over, and yet Daniel walked through them like they were nothing. That’s youth and toughness at play. Joshua is about to turn 35, and he’s never had a good chin.
“It’s the most exciting fight between two massive big punchers. The kid [Dubois] has come through after a lot of criticism from fellow professionals, and he’s done the business in his last two fights and in his fight against Kevin Lerena. He’s gone and did what he’s had to do,” said Warren.
“He [Dubois] deserves a shot. He’s the [IBF] interim champion, but we’ll see what happens,” said Warren.
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