On May 18, Usyk battled Fury in Saudi Arabia for 12 rounds, capturing the WBC, WBA, IBF and WBO belts. It is reported that the two are preparing for a rematch in Riyadh on December 21, and the Saudi side hopes that this match can once again compete for all the championship belts.
Joshua will return to Wembley in September to take on Daniel Dubois, who has just beaten Filip Hrgovic. The 26-year-old Dubois is the IBF "temporary" belt holder and a mandatory challenger for the full title that Usyk now has. Thus, the winner between Dubois and the 34-year-old Joshua will be the next contender to compete for the gold, with the WBC, WBA and WBO coming in at the bottom.
Joshua promoter Hearn: (Eddie Hearn) confirmed to the media that even if Fury and Usyk are tied, a trilogy fight between the two is unlikely. If Joshua can beat Dubois, then he will pave the way for a title challenge. "If Joshua wins in September, I expect the winner between Tyson Fury and Usyk to face Joshua in December," Hearn said. No opponents have been decided yet, there are three or four opponents under consideration, but this big battle is definitely in the plan. Our priority is to regain the World Heavyweight Title and I think we are only two fights away from the undisputed title, but only if we win the fight, and at the moment Joshua is Dubois, so we'll see! ”
Joshua said he would not take Dubois lightly: "I have to beat them one by one. It's not going to be easy, but that's my mentality. So come on, come on...... "He (Dubois) went through hard battles, so he became stronger. He has been working his way up the ranks and we will see how he performs in the near future. It doesn't matter if it's Wembley, the O2, Yorkhall, wherever they put me in, I'm happy to play. No matter where I am, I'll show up and do my job. ”
The 26-year-old Dubois has a professional record of 21-2 with 20 knockouts. In 2023, Dubois had a big fight with Usyk, when Dubois hit Usyk in the abdomen in the fifth round, causing Usyk to be unable to get up for half a day, the referee determined that it was a low strike, did not count the seconds for Usyk, and finally Usyk relieved himself and knocked out Dubois in the ninth round, which caused quite a bit of controversy. Dubois then knocked out Jarrell Miller and Zhang Zhilei's nemesis Helgovic in quick succession, and the momentum is now strong.
Joshua, 34, has a 28-3 professional record with 25 knockouts. After being beaten twice by Usyk in 2021-2022, he has now won four big fights in a row. In March, Joshua knocked out former UFC heavyweight champion Iron-Blooded Nagano, who had lost to Tyson Fury by a controversial decision, and the victory greatly boosted Joshua's popularity in the boxing world.