Boxing
BULGARIAN BOXER KUBRAT PULEV ACCUSED OF RACIALLY ABUSING ANTHONY JOSHUA
Kubrat Pulev sparked accusations of racism ahead of his world heavyweight title fight with Anthony Joshua by claiming ‘his tan is better than mine’.
The 39-year-old Bulgarian will battle it out it with Joshua for his WBA, IBF and WBO titles, with the fight set to take place on December 12 after it was initially postponed due to the Covid-19 outbreak.
And ahead of the pair’s upcoming title fight, Pulev was asked about his verdict on Joshua – in which he made a controversial comment about his opponent’s skin colour.
And following Pulev’s comments regarding Joshua, many boxing fans let their feelings be known on social media.
After hearing what Pulev said, one fan wrote: ‘That’s a shameful 1970s comment. Awful.’
‘Kubrat Pulev sadly proving why #BlackLivesMatter is needed. Idiot!’, another boxing follower said on Twitter.
And the condemnation of the Bulgarian’s comments kept on coming on social media on Thursday.
Another fan said: ‘I hope Anthony Joshua smashes the living daylight out of Pulev after that “tan” comment.’
Someone else added: ‘I think Joshua will take that Pulev comment and ram it down his throat. Expect him to want to hurt him.’
The Bulgarian’s comments come after the country’s football team were forced to play two matches behind closed doors for their fans’ racist abuse towards England players in a Euro 2020 qualifier last year.
England’s 6-0 victory over Bulgaria was stopped twice and was close to being abandoned, but Gareth Southgate’s side chose to play on in Sofia.
Bulgaria were subsequently fined a mere £65,000 by UEFA.
The Bulgaria supporters’ horrific actions included Nazi salutes and monkey chants towards England’s black players.
President of the Bulgaria Football Union, Borislav Mihaylov, and Bulgaria boss Krasimir Balakov resigned as part of the fall-out from the game.
Twelve arrests were made, with four supporters handed fines and two-year bans.
Meanwhile, it is not the first time that Pulev has landed himself in hot water.
Last year, the Bulgarian kissed a female reporter on the lips following his knockout victory over Bogdan Dinu.
After he was heavily criticised online, the boxer then insisted the pair were actually ‘friends’.
‘You may have seen a clip of me kissing a female reporter following an interview after I won my fight Saturday night,’ Pulev said.
‘The reporter, Jenny, is actually a friend of mine, and after the interview, I was so elated, I gave her a kiss.
‘Later that night, she joined me and my other friends at my post-fight celebration. On the video, after our kiss, we both laughed about it and thanked each other. There really is nothing more to this.’
But the reporter, Jennifer Ravalo, gave a different version of events, claiming she was left ‘immediately shocked and embarrassed.’
Pulev had been due to take on Joshua at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in June but that was rescheduled due to the pandemic but he has now confirmed it will go ahead on December 12 in London.
‘No turning back, no procrastination! Kubrat Pulev vs Anthony Joshua! The date is December 12th and the place is London!,’ the Bulgarian, known as ‘The Cobra’, said on his Facebook page recently.
Pulev became the mandatory challenger to Joshua’s IBF crown after beating Hughie Fury by unanimous decision back in October 2018.
-Daily Mail
Daniel Dubois came back from two knockdowns to deal Fabio Wardley a brutal and bloody first defeat as a professional and take the WBO heavyweight title in a thunderous all-British clash on Saturday.
Referee Howard Foster finally stepped in at the start of the 11th round to signal the end of the fight, with Wardley bleeding heavily from the bridge of the nose and with his right eye almost closed.
Dubois rose twice from the canvas, including being dropped by a right hook in the first 10 seconds of the fight, to pulverise Wardley and become a world heavyweight champion for the second time in his career.
“It was a war. We came through the sticky moments. Thank you, Fabio, for that,” said Dubois, who was previously IBF champion after the belt was vacated by Oleksandr Usyk in 2024, with the Ukrainian winning it back in July 2025.
“What a great fight. What a great battle, man”.
The win was Dubois’s 23rd as a professional in 26 fights, while Wardley now has a 20-1-1 record.
Veteran promoter Frank Warren, who manages both men, said it was the best heavyweight fight he had ever put on and confirmed there was a rematch clause in the contract.
For some viewers, however, it was also an uncomfortable watch that could have been stopped earlier.
The 31-year-old Wardley, who was promoted to WBO champion last November after Usyk vacated the title, was making his first defence and showed immense heart as he took a tremendous beating yet refused to capitulate.
He had his opponent on the floor, a blow Dubois, 28, later dismissed as a ‘flash knockdown’, almost with the opening bell still sounding.
Dubois was back on one knee in round three but came close to a stoppage in the sixth with the reigning champion bleeding heavily and on the ropes.
The Londoner continued to land blow after blow on Wardley, who wobbled but refused to give up.
His corner inspected the facial wounds after the eighth, and doctors and the referee took a look in rounds nine and 10, but still the fight continued, with Wardley increasingly struggling to stay on his feet and fighting on instinct.
“You witnessed something special tonight,” Warren told the BBC. “Two men baring their hearts and souls in the ring gave everything, didn’t leave one bit outside the ring.
“They were getting hit with bombs that would take people out, and they stood it.”
-Reuters
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World heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk has backed Anthony Joshua to defeat Tyson Fury in their long‑anticipated clash later this year and has been helping him with his game plan.
Usyk, who holds the IBF, WBA and WBC belts, has been working with former opponent Joshua in recent months and said he has been impressed by the Briton’s development.
He added that 36-year-old Joshua deserves to beat compatriot and fellow ex-champion Fury, 37, after changing his approach.
“Fury is an unbelievable fighter, and Fury is a very dangerous guy, but I look at how Anthony works and how he has changed,” Usyk told the BBC.
“I like Fury, he is my greedy belly’s best friend, he’s an amazing fighter, but I want Anthony to win – he deserves it.”
Joshua, a former two‑time world heavyweight champion, is scheduled to return to the ring against Kristian Prenga in Riyadh on July 25. The bout will be his first since a car accident last December in which two close friends were killed.
Usyk said his recent work with Joshua has focused on technical and mental preparation.
“We speak about strategy, boxing skills and psychology. We speak about fights, our fights, and I say ‘champ, come on, don’t stop’,” he said.
The Ukrainian is set to defend his world titles against Dutch kickboxer Rico Verhoeven on May 23 in Egypt.
-Reuters
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- Summary
- *Joshua to face Kristian Prenga in Riyadh after car accident hiatus
- *Fight marks start of Joshua’s multi-fight deal in Saudi Arabia, announced by Turki Alalshikh
- *Promoter Hearn says Joshua vs Fury is signed for later in the year
Former world heavyweight boxing champions Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury have signed up for a long-awaited clash later this year, promoter Eddie Hearn said on Monday.
“Signed, sealed, delivered! AJ v Fury is on!,” Hearn posted on Instagram.
The announcement came after confirmation that Joshua will return to the ring against Kristian Prenga in Riyadh on July 25 in the Briton’s first fight since he was in a car accident last December that killed two close friends.
U.S.-based Albanian Prenga, 35, is a former kickboxer with a ring record of 20 wins and one defeat since he turned professional in 2016.
The fight, billed as “The Comeback”, was announced by Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority chairman Turki Alalshikh and will be broadcast live worldwide on DAZN.
Turki also posted on X a message “to my friends in Great Britain – it’s happening. It’s signed” while his Ring Magazine said the fight would happen in Q4 2026 on Netflix.
SIXTH-ROUND KNOCKOUT
Joshua, 36, has a record of 28 wins and four losses with his most recent fight a sixth-round knockout of American Jake Paul on December 19 in Miami.
“It’s no secret I’ve taken some time to consolidate and rebuild to be ready for stepping back into the ring, and today is the next step on that journey,” said Joshua.
“I’m delighted to have agreed a multi-fight deal starting with July 25th in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. I’m looking forward to competing and picking up where I left off. The landlord will collect his rent. That is certain.”
Hearn told Sky Sports television he wanted a “tune-up bout” in July before facing Fury potentially in November.
“July and November are the two dates that have been presented to us now and we expect to move forward,” he said. “Fury has just had his tune-up fight with 12 really vital rounds to get him sharp for the next one and I expect us to do the same.”
Fury called for a showdown with Joshua after he outclassed Russia’s Arslanbek Makhmudov on April 11.
“Next, I want to give you the fight you’ve all been waiting for. I want you AJ, Anthony Joshua, let’s give the fight fans what they want, the Battle of Britain,” he said then.
-Reuters
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