Boxing
Anthony Joshua weighs a career heaviest in tonight’s fight
Anthony Joshua and Jermaine Franklin fight on Saturday night. (Photo: Mark Robinson/Matchroom Boxing)
Anthony Joshua will head into Saturday’s fight with Jermaine Franklin at a career heaviest.
Joshua – who suffered his second successive defeat to Usyk in August 2022 – weighed in at 255.4lbs on Friday afternoon.
The former champion will be hoping his added weight will help him make a statement on Saturday and register his first win since against Kubrat Pulev in December 2020.
Meanwhile, Franklin has dropped 23lbs from his points defeat to Dillian Whyte in November 2022 and looked visibly learner in the torso and face as he took to the stage. He tipped the scales at just over 234lbs.
Franklin’s weight loss provides a clear indication of his game plan heading into Saturday’s bout. The American will be looking to match Joshua’s output – with the British heavyweight being forced to work 40 per cent harder in his second fight to Usyk than any of his previous fights.
Joshua’s weight has been a topic of conversation ever since he made the step up to professional boxing in 2013. Fans and pundits have often criticised the British heavyweight for being ‘too big’, ‘too heavy’ and ‘too sluggish’.
Some insist the 33-year-old has bulked up too much since the amateur days when he beat Roberto Cammarelle in 2012 to become Great Britain’s 29th and final gold medallist at London Olympic Games.
However, Joshua’s coaches are adamant he’s in perfect condition for facing Franklin at the O2 Arena on Saturday evening.
Meanwhile, Franklin weighed in 23lbs lighter than he was against Whyte in November 2022. His coaches insist the American’s weight loss will help him overthrow the two-time heavyweight champion.
Jesse Addison told Sportsmail earlier in the week that Franklin is heading into this fight ‘stronger, faster and more focused’ than ever.
While Lorenzo Reynolds said the American heavyweight is more conditioned than he was against Whyte and shut down claims his weight loss has diminished his power.
Reynolds told Sportsmail: ‘We are really happy with his [Franklin’s] weight. We are happy with his commitment. We are looking forward to an awesome fight this Saturday.’
When asked what the secret to his weight loss was, Reynolds said ‘time’. He said Franklin has had longer to prepare for his fight against Joshua than he did for the Whyte fight in November 2022.
Reynolds said: ‘This time we went down to a good state that has a lot of heat in Florida. We took advantage of every training opportunity. We had a very focused Jermaine.
‘We put him on a strict diet. He answered every test that we gave him. So we are expecting for him to do great on the final exam on Saturday night.’
Reynolds also said Franklin was lacking fitness heading into the Whyte fight – which he lost 115-115, 116-112 and 116-112.
However, Franklin’s strength and conditioning coach is confident that the American has ‘premium gasoline in his fuel tank’ this time around.
He told Sportsmail: ‘The Dillian Whyte fight showed us that he has a lot of heart. A lot of fighters lack heart but Jermaine showed that he had a lot of heart. But, the conditioning was lacking.
‘So, we went back and we made his weakness his strength. We had time to do that so we are confident in his cardiovascular system. We are confident that if the fight goes the distance, he has a lot of premium gasoline in his fuel tank.’
There have been concerns that Franklin’s weight loss could affect his power. However, Addison is adamant that his fighter is ‘stronger, faster and more focused’ than ever.
When asked whether Franklin’s weight loss will impact his power, Addison said: ‘Absolutely not. If anything he has gotten stronger.
‘He’s gotten faster and he’s more focused. We feel like the weight loss will be an advantage for Jermaine against Joshua.’
-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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