UK Boxing
Anthony Joshua’s offer from the head of the UFC and what the boxing star immediately told Dana White
Anthony Joshua was previously approached by UFC supremo Dana White (Photo: Getty)
According to his promoter Eddie Hearn, Dana White has sensationally approached Anthony Joshua about the prospect of joining the UFC supremo’s boxing stable. The former heavyweight champion is close to returning to the ring for the first time since his December knockout victory over Jake Paul. Just days later, he was involved in a sedate car accident in Nigeria that killed two of his closest friends.
The tragic incident has complicated Joshua’s return to boxing, but he is believed to be preparing for two gigantic fights before the end of the year. He is expected to have a warm-up fight in the summer, likely against Deontay Wilder, before finally facing Tyson Fury in the fall.
Joshua has worked with Hearn throughout his professional career, but White became his target in an attempt to lure him away from his longtime promoter.
White, best known for his role as UFC president, ventured into boxing with his Zuffa brand last year and immediately made a splash by poaching Conor Benn from Hearn on a one-fight deal.
He also tried to sign Joshua, but the former Olympic champion was not interested in doing business, instead showing loyalty to Hearn.
During the performance in Talking about cigars podcast, a Matchroom promoter recalls: “About two deals ago, the media published an article… ‘AJ talks to Dana White.’ And I said, ‘What the hell?’
“So it’s in the paper, right. So I go to AJ, we have a media scandal, and I say, ‘What the hell?’ And he says, ‘Yeah, he called me out of the blue.’
“And I said, ‘What?’ And he said, ‘I told him right away. I told him I was with Eddie, but we had a nice conversation. We talked for about half an hour.’
“Because AJ likes to listen, I’m like, ‘What?’ And then, funnily enough, about six months later I went to Dana’s office and we had a meeting.
The Whites failed to extort Joshua from Matchroom (Photo: Getty)
“And I said, ‘Oh, I heard you talked to AJ.’ And he said, ‘Yeah, and you know something, he told me within the first five seconds to let you know that I’m not leaving Eddie. He’s my guy, but let’s talk.’ I respected that. I was like, ‘Fuck, wow.'”
Hearn added that Joshua’s loyalty had been tested several times over the years but he had not wavered despite being offered lucrative offers.
“After our contract expired, he was offered deals that were much better short-term financial options for him,” Hearn added.
“And when you looked at it, fur again, no panties. When you looked at the beginning, you thought, Wow.” But then you thought, “Oh, you have to do this, and it’s a five-year deal,” and blah, blah, blah.
“But he never even [was like]: “Let me look at it.” It was like, “No, no. I’m with Eddie, so whatever, but Eddie can look at it.”
“I have a lot of respect for him because… there are a few players, probably a few players, that I feel the same way about as AJ.
“Like in an empty room with one or two people, they will support you in conversation, you know what I mean? And in life, you know, there are not many people like that, that’s true, especially in a game like boxing.
“So I will always be grateful to him. Not only as a company because he helped us and is now a shareholder in my company, but also because of what he did for me and the company.”
EXPRESS SPORT ON FB! Find all the best sports news and much more on our Facebook page.
Frank Warren is promoting a Doncaster show for the first time in over thirty years, while Dave Allen is keen to disrupt the odds in his hometown.
Hrgovic will enter the competition as the clear favorite against Allen after his last victory in Saudi Arabia.
“El Animal” heads into the main event looking to burst the bubble of Allen, who is fighting in Doncaster for the first time in over 10 years.
Over the years, Hrgovic has competed at a higher level, with wins over Zhilei Zhang, Dempsey McKean and Joe Joyce.
See this post on Instagram
He last saw action in the Moses Itauma vs. Dillian Whyte match in Riyad, Saudi Arabia.
The Croatian defeated David Adeleye on a huge scorecard, although he faced some adversity in the eighth round when the Briton reacted well after being dropped himself in the earlier round.
During the period in which Hrgovic did not fight, Allen fought twice, the first in October when he faced Tyson Fury’s last opponent, Arslanbek Makhmudov. at the Sheffield Arena.
“The White Rhino” was outscored over 12 rounds, with the three judges scoring him 109-117, 110-116 and 111-115.
Allen returned four months later when he faced French heavyweight Karim Berredjem, whom he handled easily, stopping his fighter with a minute remaining in the first round.
Allen spoke to professional boxing fans after the pair faced off for the first time during fight week and admitted he was the underdog but was joyful for the opportunity.
“I can’t sit here and say I can beat him, but I know I can compete with him.
“You never really know because you might have a one night stand. I just need one night, like when Lucas Browne left his upper body to finish him off.”
“Or [when he won against] Nick Webb, if I hit any of them, it’s game over.
“So I’m going into this with a little more confidence, more confidence than I’ve ever had before.”
Prediction: Hrgovic will have to be at his best to avoid being dragged into the deep end like he was in the eighth round against Adeleye, but he should have enough points to score over the tough Allen.
See this post on Instagram
Michael Gomez Jr. fight with Lee McGregor
Gomez Jr. wastes no time getting back into the ring. Just 46 days after his victory over Jordan Flynn, he returns to fight against the tough Lee McGregor.
He stopped Flynn in the third round of the fight, with the 30-year-old claiming he suffered a broken jaw.
This was Gomez Jr.’s first appearance. since his arrest by Reece Belotti last February.
He will be hoping to build on his recent win against McGregor, who has also fought just once since defeat last year.
McGregor most recently won a points decision over Emiliano Leonel Araujo in his first appearance since being stopped by Nathaniel Collins.
Prediction: Gomez Jr should have enough points to earn points over 10 rounds.
Undercard remaining
Louie O’Doherty and Ahmed Hatim fought challenging in an open training session yesterday and tensions are starting to build between the two undefeated fighters.
They are scheduled to fight for both the British and Commonwealth lightweight titles.
Louie O’Doherty and Ahmed Hatim ARE WORKING in open training
#AllenHrgovic | Saturday | Doncaster EcoPower Stadium | @daznboxing pic.twitter.com/Memch6LOGG
— Queensberry Promotions (@Queensberry) May 13, 2026
The fight will last 12 rounds. O’Doherty is coming off a 10th-round stoppage win over Regan Glackin, while Hatim won a unanimous decision over Liam Dillon last September.
Prediction: In a real 50-50 fight, O’Doherty could have the points advantage.
Dave Allen’s welterweight fighter, Joe Hayden, returns to action after an impressive second-round stoppage victory over James Atkins after his last fight, during which he won the first belts of his professional career.
Dave Allen really worked with Joe Hayden
#AllenHrgovic | Saturday | Doncaster EcoPower Stadium | @daznboxing pic.twitter.com/07QxHDQdyK
— Queensberry Promotions (@Queensberry) May 13, 2026
He should have more than enough to beat Ryan Frost again in the later rounds, and Frost has defeated his last four opponents.
Exceptional prospects Asadkhuja Muydinkhujaev and Kian Hamilton return for the second professional appearance of their careers and both will impress. Each of them should win at the break.
Hull’s Ted Jackson returns to action against Mike Byles and should claim his seventh win since turning professional, while amateur standout Bradley Casey should remain undefeated in the cruiserweight division.
Leighton Birchall should stop Leonardo Baez early in the qualifiers, which will also feature Carl Fail.
Maxi Hughes was scheduled to challenge Lewis Sylvester, but the fight was canceled the week of the fight and “Maximus” withdrew for reasons that have yet to be disclosed.
The post Dave Allen vs. Filip Hrgovic – Gigantic Fight Preview and Predictions appeared first on ProBoxing-Fans.com.
JavaScript must be enabled for the page to display properly
FOLLOW US
UPCOMING FIGHTS
HEAVY Championship
Wardley
VS
Dubois
Dubois won R11
JR. BANTAM WEIGHT Championship
SUP. AVERAGE WEIGHT Championship
FEATHER WEIGHT Championship
AVERAGE WEIGHT Championship
Robinson
VS
Spencer
R won
JR. WEIGHT Championship
JR. AVERAGE WEIGHT Championship
Privacy Policy / Cookie Policy | World Boxing Organization. All rights reserved.
The official record holder
Derek Chisora has gone back on his vow to retire and insists he will return for a rematch with Deontay Wilder.
Chisora was defeated by a split decision by Wilder last month at the O2 Arena.
The 42-year-old, who has fallen twice in the fight, previously announced he would end his 50-fight professional career regardless of the outcome.
However, the Londoner now claims he wants to secure a rematch with the ‘Brown Bomber’ after his wife allowed him to continue fighting.
“I’m working on a rematch,” he said Sky Sports News.
“My wife gave me the green featherlight, so I will do a rematch.
“I haven’t confirmed it yet.
“I have some meetings tomorrow [on Wednesday] and we’ll see how it goes.
See this post on Instagram
“He [Wilder] he is interested because he is also upset about the outcome.
“Yes, he could have won, but he’s nervous, so we’re going to do it again.
“That’s all. [At the] I will retire at the end of this year.”
Wilder was hoping to secure a long-awaited fight against Anthony Joshua, whom he called out after defeating Chisora.
40-year-old former world heavyweight champion passed by “AJ” after the fight and told him: “let’s do it.”
However, Joshua, who has not fought since knocking out Jake Paul in December, has opted to fight Kristian Prenga on July 25 in Riyad and will then face Tyson Fury in November, provided he wins.
Wilder’s manager Shelly Finkel stated that Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn had not contacted them.
“You can’t be disappointed with something that never happened,” Finkel said Heavenly sports.
“Eddie never contacted us and Joshua obviously had no intention of fighting Deontay Wilder.
“Same ancient story, just fresh date.”
Joshua’s fight against Prenga is his first since defeating Paul and a fatal car crash that killed two of his close friends and left him with minor injuries.
Fury, who retired last month and defeated Arslanbek Makhmudov, is now also expected to fight again before finally facing his British rival.
The post Derek Chisora Shocks Retirement Turnaround appeared first on ProBoxing-Fans.com.
O’Shaquie Foster says Richardson Hitchins is ‘scary as hell’
Dave Allen vs. Filip Hrgovic – Gigantic Fight Preview and Predictions
Naoya Inoue offered an immediate title fight in a fresh weight class: “I’m already ready”
-
Opinions & Features1 year agoPacquiao vs marquez competition: History of violence
-
MMA1 year agoDmitry Menshikov statement in the February fight
-
Results1 year agoStephen Fulton Jr. becomes world champion in two weight by means of a decision
-
Results1 year agoKeyshawn Davis Ko’s Berinchyk, when Xander Zayas moves to 21-0
-
Video1 year agoFrank Warren on Derek Chisora vs Otto Wallin – ‘I THOUGHT OTTO WOULD GIVE DEREK PROBLEMS!’
-
Analysis1 year agoRobert Garcia discusses the debate on the greatest Mexican warrior in history
-
Video1 year ago‘DEREK CHISORA RETIRE TONIGHT!’ – Anthony Yarde PLEADS for retirement after WALLIN
-
Results1 year agoLive: Catterall vs Barboza results and results card