Nigerian-born British heavyweight boxer Anthony Joshua has been given a strict 48-hour ultimatum to accept a highly anticipated rematch against Daniel Dubois, set for February.
Failing to accept the offer would mean Anthony Joshua forfeits his opportunity to reclaim the championship belts that he lost after a surprising defeat to the young heavyweight in September at Wembley Stadium.
In that shocking bout, Dubois, who is just 27 years old, sent Joshua to the canvas four times before his corner decided to throw in the towel during the fifth round. This loss for Joshua was particularly harrowing, occurring in front of a massive crowd of 96,000 fans at Wembley.
Initially, plans were set for a rematch to take place in Saudi Arabia next February. However, Joshua’s promoter, Eddie Hearn, has voiced concerns that the timeline for a rematch may be too ambitious given the circumstances surrounding Joshua’s previous performance.
Frank Warren, Dubois’ promoter, is pushing for a swift resolution and has made it clear that if Joshua does not respond within the next 48 hours, the rematch would likely be off the table.
Warren expressed his urgency when speaking to iFLTV, stating, “Unless AJ gets back to 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 by tomorrow, even hinting that there may be no progress on the matter for 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 potentially find success against Dubois in a second encounter.
However, he also cautioned against hasty decisions, advocating for a more measured approach. “I think Dubois is dangerous, and he’s going to be super confident after the last job. I still believe AJ would probably beat him in a rematch if he boxed differently, but that’s just my opinion,” he told The Mirror.
