A decision will be made this week on whether Anthony Joshua will fight in 2025, promoter Eddie Hearn has said.
Joshua has been outside the ring for almost 14 months since he was stunned with a fifth-round stoppage by fellow British heavyweight Daniel Dubois last September.
It halted Joshua’s momentum under trainer Ben Davison and his charge towards another world title tilt.
However, Hearn has now revealed, at the grand arrivals for Chris Eubank Jr. vs. Conor Benn II, that a tune-up fight is on the cards and could even take place before the end of the year.
He told Sky Sports: "We will make a decision this week in terms of if he will fight this year. We have to decide by this weekend basically.
"It doesn’t really matter where it is. You won’t know about it until maybe even fight week. Honestly. That’s the whole purpose of it.
"I think it would be so good for him but bizarre at the same time, because there’s no money in the fight. We’re not going to start using him to sell tickets. Literally he will just pop up on a show.
"He’s really up for it. I think it would be so good for him. I’d love him to go in there and just smash someone up.”
The Briton was rumoured to be eyeing up a fight against retired rival Tyson Fury | GETTYThe British boxing star last fought in September 2024, when he was knocked out by Dubois at Wembley.
The defeat ended a run of four straight wins after back-to-back losses to Oleksandr Usyk.
With old rival Tyson Fury expected to resume his boxing career in 2026, an eagerly anticipated bout with Joshua is still a possibility for the duo.
AJ has also been heavily linked to events in Africa during early 2026, with several opponents putting their names forward, including Tony Yoka.
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Five facts about boxing that fans might not know | GBNEWS/PAHe could appear on the undercard of Chris Eubank Jr's fight against Conor Benn in a huge rematch on November 15.
If the turnaround is too tight, the former World Heavyweight Champion could also be lined up to appear in the US on the undercard of Diego Pacheco vs Kevin Lele Sadjo on December 13 in California.
The last chance will be on December 27 in Saudi Arabia, where Naoya Inoue is scheduled to appear.
Being an undercard fight would most likely mean his match-up will not be a big name.
Eddie Hearn has now revealed that a tune-up fight is on the cards and could even take place before the end of the year
| PAAJ has headlined every event he has appeared at since he fought Kevin Johnson in 2015 as a preliminary bout to Kell Brook's clash with Frankie Gavin at the O2 Arena.
Still making his name at the time, the boxing star unleashed a brutal KO victory over Johnson.
He is currently awaiting official confirmation of his next move as he prepares in camp.