Boxing

Eddie Hearn reveals Anthony Joshua is considering fight offers from Africa and is still watching Tyson Fury fight

Published

11 months ago

October 9, 2025

Anthony Joshua is considering offers to fight in Ghana and Nigeria ahead of his 2026 megafight with Tyson Fury, according to Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn.

Joshua (28-4, 25 KO) will turn 36 next week and has not boxed since a knockout loss to English rival Daniel Dubois in September 2024. He is currently recovering from surgery on an elbow injury and Hearn has said he will return to boxing either overdue this year or early 2026.

Martin Bakole and former WBC heavyweight world champion Deontay Wilder are reportedly vying to become Joshua’s next opponent after the biggest break of his professional career.

Bakole (21-2-1, 16 KO), 33, of Congo, is an option for Joshua to fight in Nigeria and has not won his last two fights after a second-round loss to Joseph Parker as a overdue substitute in February and then a draw against Efe Ajagba in May. Wilder (44-4-1, 32 KO), an Alabama native who turns 40 this month, recorded only his second victory in six fights in June and expects to fight in early 2026.

“I originally thought there wouldn’t be an AJ fight this year, but now it’s a possibility,” Hearn told ESPN.

“I went to Dubai to meet him and he’s really back, he’s withdrawn, he’s focused. It took him a good few months to come to terms with the defeat, then he got injured, then he went back to camp, then he rested, but then it all came back and he needed surgery, so another three months passed.

“It was a really frustrating time. But when I saw him in Dubai, I really wanted to look him in the eye and find out if he wants to make a quick buck before you give up, or if you really want it, and the answer is the latter: he really wants to become a three-time world heavyweight champion. That’s his motivation.”

Hearn also revealed that there had been offers from Africa as to what Joshua wanted to do before he retired from the sport.

“We had an approach from Ghana and now Nigeria. I think AJ fighting in Africa would be amazing.

“If he fights again in February or March, he will be out of the ring for 18 months. That’s plenty of time to get back to fighting a top 10 heavyweight, but he’s also Anthony Joshua and you have huge contracts, so you can’t just fight some random guy who’s ranked 100th in the world through eight rounds. If he wasn’t Anthony Joshua, you could do it, but in his position he’s it’s very tough.”

Joshua and Hearn’s top priority is securing a long-awaited fight against English rival and fellow two-time world champion Fury (34-2-1, 24 KO), who has not boxed since undisputed world heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk passed him for the second time. Joshua, who also lost twice on points to Ukrainian Usyk, and 37-year-old Fury have been in talks to fight each other for five years without any fight.

Hearn recently held talks about making Joshua vs. Fury with Turki Alalshikh, president of the General Entertainment Authority in Saudi Arabia and the most powerful figure in world boxing.

“I’ve never heard him talk about anyone the way he talks about Tyson Fury, not only about wanting to fight him, but about how he can’t wait for the spark to knock him out,” Hearn told ESPN.

“I’ve never heard him say that before. He really wants to fight him and he really wants to beat him. But he’s also looking at the division and how it’s going to be split up a little bit, and he wants to get vigorous.”

“He said to me, ‘You know, some people go to smaller shows to get some exposure, some people go to Mexico to fight under the radar.’ It’s strenuous to do that when you’re probably the most famed boxer in the world. But when you’re sidelined for about a year, it’s very tough to get back into a huge fight without gaining that momentum.

“When we fight Fury or anyone who ever fights a huge fight in 2026, we’d just like to get some momentum going, which is good news for fight fans because he wants to fight, he wants to be vigorous. When I told him you probably have another 18 months, and he said, ‘Why are you counting it out?’

“I was in Riyad last week with His Excellency and he has a plan that he wants to implement for AJ as well, which inevitably includes a fight with Tyson Fury. Honestly, I think Turki Alalshikh is probably the only one who can make the fight with Tyson Fury happen because they will both want a huge sum of money and Turki has a reputation for organizing the biggest fights in sports. And the biggest fight in the sport is Anthony Joshua vs. Tyson Fury, there’s no doubt about it.

“We’re ready. One of Turki’s greatest advantages is that he will individually make a deal with both sides. You make a deal with Turki and then you let him do the other side.”

Boxing

Nelson Hysa vs Thomas Narmo Scorecard Analysis and Highlights

Published

22 hours ago

August 29, 2026

The Punch Junkie™ News

"Nelson Hysa vs Thomas Narmo Scorecard Analysis and Highlights"

World Boxing News provides a scorecard as unbeaten heavyweights Nelson Hysa and Thomas Narmo collide at the O2 Arena in London.

Hysa enters with a perfect 24-0 record against Narmo at 14-0, with neither heavyweight tasting defeat as a professional.

Someone’s ‘0’ has to go, with the regional WBO and WBA Global heavyweight titles on the line over ten rounds on the Moses Itauma vs Filip Hrgovic undercard.

WBN provides a live scorecard of the contest below, plus live results throughout the event.

Hysa vs Narmo Scorecard

Nelson Hysa vs Thomas Narmo

(Live scorecard will refresh every 2 mins)

WBO and WBA Global Heavyweight Titles
O2 Arena, London
10×3

Round	House	Narmo
Round 1	10	9
Round 2	TKO
Round 3
Round 4
Round 5
Round 6
Round 7
Round 8
Round 9
Round 10
WBN Totals:

Official Result:

Preview

Hysa puts his unbeaten 24-0 record on the line against Narmo, who arrives in London with a perfect 14-0 record of his own.

The ten-round heavyweight contest carries the regional belts and gives both men the opportunity to make a statement on the Itauma vs Hrgovic undercard.

The Hysa vs Narmo scorecard will continue alongside more live coverage on World Boxing News.

About the Author

Phil Jay is the Editor-in-Chief of World Boxing News (WBN), a BWAA-acknowledged boxing news website founded in 2010. A veteran boxing reporter with 16 years of experience, he has interviewed world champions, broken international exclusives, and reported ringside from major events. His work is published worldwide through WBN and distributed on platforms including Apple News.

Read Phil Jay’s full bio and latest stories.

Boxing

Tim Bradley Urges Teofimo Lopez to Seize His Moment with Key Next Fight

Published

1 day ago

August 29, 2026

The Punch Junkie™ News

"Tim Bradley Urges Teofimo Lopez to Seize His Moment with Key Next Fight"

Timothy Bradley has urged Teofimo Lopez to face one man after dethroning Rolando Romero for the WBA welterweight strap.

‘The Takeover’ became a three-division world champion last weekend, claiming a majority decision victory over ‘Rolly’ in his first outing at 147lbs.

While Romero was always dangerous, and even hurt his man in round five, it was Lopez who ultimately proved the busier and more skilful operator.

As a result, the 29-year-old is now eager to secure unification matches against either Devin Haney, Liam Paro or the winner of Ryan Garcia vs Conor Benn, which takes place at Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena on September 12.

At the same time, though, Lopez could soon be ordered to face mandatory challenger Jack Catterall, who claimed his WBA ‘regular’ title with a unanimous decision victory over Shakhram Giyasov in May.

Before that, WBA president Gilberto Mendoza had ruled that the winner would earn his shot at the full welterweight belt within 180 days of their contest taking place.

And while, admittedly, a title defence by November 19 seems entirely unrealistic, Bradley has nonetheless expressed his desire for Lopez to face leading contender Catterall.

“Teo, you gotta face Jack Catterall next. Yeah, you gotta honour that [mandatory duty]. You just got the belt, right? You gotta defend that title against Jack Catterall.

“He’s been waiting patiently, and it’s his time and his opportunity.”

While Catterall does, indeed, appear to be in a strong position with the WBA, Lopez’ manager Keith Connolly is actively exploring a route for the American to swerve his mandatory duty and chase more lucrative opportunities.

Boxing

Mikaela Mayer vs Chantelle Cameron: Live Results and Fight Highlights

Published

1 day ago

August 29, 2026

The Punch Junkie™ News

"Mikaela Mayer vs Chantelle Cameron: Live Results and Fight Highlights"

LIVE COVERAGE

World Boxing News provides results and updates as Mikaela Mayer faces Chantelle Cameron in a super welterweight world title fight at bp pulse LIVE in Birmingham.

Mayer and Cameron collide over ten rounds with the WBC, WBA and WBO super welterweight titles on the line in the main event of MVPW-06.

The card also features Caroline Dubois defending the WBC and WBO lightweight titles against Amelia Moore, while Terri Harper faces Miranda Reyes over eight rounds.

WBN provides live results and updates from every bout as they happen.

Scorecards:

Mikaela Mayer vs. Chantelle Cameron
Caroline Dubois vs. Amelia Moore

Live Results

All times are local BST.

20:06

Terri Harper blasted out Miranda Reyes in two rounds to announce herself at super lightweight. Harper is aiming to win a world title in a fourth weight class and made the perfect start to life at 140 pounds.

A crushing right hand did the damage, with Reyes out of it when the referee stopped her on her feet.

19:45

A nervous Tysie Gallagher came through Brandi Robinson in a super bantamweight bout that could easily have been a draw. Gallagher got the nod after eight rounds 77-75 on the referee’s card after being warned more than once that she wasn’t doing enough.

18:56

Neeraj Goyatwho was once lined up to fight Amir Khan, secured a six-round points win over Yessin Koulali at super lightweight.

18:11

Scott Melvin recorded a sixth round stoppage over Dylan Cheema at lightweight. Melvin’s C.V. reads 13-1 after inflicting a fouth defeat on Cheema.

17:52

Shannon Courtenay and Ebony Cotton fought to a draw over six rounds. The former WBA bantamweight champion and Cotton battled to a stalemate despite Courtenay seemingly doing enough.

Referee Chris Dean scored the contest 57-57 as Courtenay moved to 11-3-1, while Cotton is now 2-2-1.

17:26

Gemma Richardson got the victory against Kirstie Bavington via a six-round decision. The super lightweight made it five straight victories with an assured performance against the game Bavington.

17:01

Hamza Uddin and Brandon Bethell scored early wins as the action got underway in Birmingham.

Uddin defeated Jemsi Kibazange at flyweight, while Bethell scored a decision over Jorge Huerta in the super lightweight division.

TV Coverage and Remaining Bouts

The event is available live on Sky Sports in the United Kingdom and ESPN+ in the United States.

Remaining bouts:

Mikaela Mayer vs. Chantelle Cameron — WBC and WBO super welterweight titles, 10 rounds
Caroline Dubois vs. Amelia Moore — WBC and WBO lightweight titles, 10 rounds
Reina Tellez vs. Jessica Barry — featherweight, 10 rounds

Follow WBN’s live boxing coverage throughout the event.

About the Author

Read Phil Jay’s full bio and latest stories.