Anthony Joshua has formally moved from the UK to Dubai, as confirmed in corporate documents filed on March 7 for his companies Sparta Promotions Constrained and 258 Investments Constrained. Dubai’s zero income tax environment presents an obvious financial incentive – Sparta Promotions reported profits of over £20m in 2024 – but the boxing implications could be more critical than the balance sheet.

Career at a crossroads

Joshua (29-4, 26 KO) is currently at the most uncertain stage of his professional life. Ten days after stopping Jake Paul in the sixth round on December 19, the former two-time unified heavyweight champion was involved in a devastating car accident on Nigeria’s Lagos-Ibadan highway. Two close friends and members of his inner circle – personal trainer Kevin “Latz” Ayodele and strength and conditioning coach Sina Ghami – were killed. Joshua suffered rib injuries and was taken to hospital before being released on Modern Year’s Eve.

The disaster derailed an ambitious roadmap for 2026: a reshuffle of the season in Riyad in March, followed by the long-awaited showdown with Tyson Fury in August. This timeline is now waste paper.

“The original plan for AJ was to fight in March and then fight Tyson Fury in August. That didn’t happen,” promoter Eddie Hearn told the media in February. according to ESPN. “I think he’ll be back in the behind schedule summer, but he’s not physically able to go back to camp yet.”

Hearn has set July as his target return date, although in a separate interview with First Round TV he admitted there is no guarantee Joshua will even fight again.

Dubai as a training base

Joshua’s connection to Dubai is nothing fresh. He has used city facilities to host training camps throughout his career, and in 2017 he was photographed sparring on the Burj Al Arab helipad. He recently trained there in February with former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Making Dubai a enduring base rather than an occasional stopover raises practical questions. Joshua’s long-standing UK squad – built around a network of coaches, sparring partners and support staff who have supported him over the years in the championship – would need to be repeated or reimagined. The loss of Ayodele and Ghami has already broken that support system at the worst possible time.

Dubai’s geographical location actually brings Joshua closer to Riyad, where the Riyad Turki Alalshikh season has hosted many of boxing’s biggest recent events. If Joshua’s remaining fights are financed primarily by Saudi investment – as negotiations with Fury suggest – his proximity to that power center is not a disadvantage.

Fury Fight: Delayed, Not Dead

Fury, who retired after back-to-back defeats to Oleksandr Usyk in 2024, has announced his own comeback and his meeting with Arslanbek Makhmudov is scheduled for April 11 at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Hearn left the door open to an all-British showdown, suggesting it could come in behind schedule 2026 or early 2027. Fury, however, has publicly stated his preference for a trilogy fight with Usyk if he beats Makhmudov, which would push the fight with Joshua even further down the calendar.

The fight that British boxing fans have been clamoring for for a decade now hinges on a sequence of events that must end exactly right: Joshua must recover, win July training and stay on Alalshikh’s radar while Fury pursues his own path. As Fury said Heavenly sportsJoshua’s disaster was the catalyst for his return: “Life is very compact, very precious and very frail. Anything can happen at any time.”

What will happen next

Joshua is 36 years elderly and has four defeats under his belt. Keeping Paul was a necessary payoff, but it told the sport nothing about his standing against elite heavyweights. The last time he defeated a ranked opponent was a decision over Jermaine Franklin in April 2023 – almost three years ago.

The fresh address does not change these facts. What may change is the emotional environment around the final chapter of his career. Joshua spoke publicly for the first time since the February crash, describing his return around the friends he lost: “My goal is to continue to support them achieve their goals. Even if they are not here physically when I pray, I know they will support me spiritually.”

This is not the language of a person chasing a payday loan. Whether he moves from a gym in Dubai or Sheffield, the challenge is the same: to prove that, at the age of 36, Anthony Joshua is still one of the best heavyweights in the world. The address you provide on your corporate filing is much less critical than the address you provide when the bell rings.