Anthony Joshua vs. Daniel Dubois, which will take place on September 21st, will feature a loaded card of local talent at its show at Wembley Stadium in London.
Dubois has been elevated from interim to full IBF heavyweight champion for the fight, giving Joshua a chance to capture the belt. Joshua wanted the IBF title to be on the line for the fight, and now he’s getting his wish.
Without that, he wasn’t going to take the match. It would have been Zhilei Zhang or Joseph Parker standing across from Joshua on September 21st at Wembley Stadium.
Obviously, the rumored card has some hits and misses, with some fights that don’t belong, but they’re ideal for creating interest in older British fans.
Rumored Undercard: A Mix of Experience and Local Appeal
As good as the main event is between former two-time heavyweight champion Joshua (28-3, 25 KOs) and newly upgraded IBF champion Dubois (21-2, 20 KOs), a great undercard isn’t that important.
The rumored card in full:
Anthony Joshua vs. Daniel Dubois
Liam Smith vs. Josh Kelly
Anthony Cacace vs. Josh Warrington
Tyler Denny vs. Hamzah Sheeraz
Joshua Buatsi vs. Willy Hutchinson
Mark Chamberlain vs. Josh Padley
EBU middleweight champion Tyler Denny (19-2-3, 1 KOs) will have a tough fight on his hands going up against the big puncher Hamzah Sheeraz (20-0, 16 KOs). That’s not the ideal match-up for the light-hitting Denny, and he likely won’t last long against that massive puncher Sheeraz. It will be an interesting spectacle for fans to watch, though.
Former WBO junior middleweight champion Liam Smith, now 35-years-old, isn’t a relevant fighter in this era of the sport, but he’s popular in the UK and there will be interest from the older fans in seeing him on the card.
Liam’s opponent, Josh Kelly (15-1-1, 8 KOs) has slowly been rebuilding his career since being obliterated by David Avanesyan by a sixth round knockout in 2021. Junior middleweight Kelly has won his last five fights against nondescript opposition to get pushed up the rankings. However, he’s not seen as a guy that is a threat to any of the champions at 154. He’s more domestic level.
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