AJ Could Face Agit Kabayel On December 23rd – Says Hearn

In the latest boxing news, Eddie Hearn has revealed that Anthony Joshua could face Agit Kabayel on December 23rd, 2023.

Those comments would fit in line with Joshua’s desire to box three times in 2023. The former unified heavyweight champion has already faced off against Jermaine Franklin and Robert Helens this year under his new trainer Derrick James.

While a fight with Deontay Wilder has long been talked about, the fight has failed to materialise with Saudi Arabia being off the table after Skills Challenge Entertainment could not bring it about. This is despite the fact that Joshua’s recent comments offered hope that a fight could come about once again.

AJ On The Wilder Fight

“They want to put Usyk vs Fury and Joshua vs Wilder on the same night. When Fury gets through Ngannou it is going to be late October going into November so I doubt he will prepare for Usyk and then fight in December. It is too short. So, the next window will be in March or April and that is when the undisputed fight will happen. What we are being told is that they want to make it a mega-card,It won’t be a championship fighter – which is Usyk and Fury. It won’t be none of them guys and I am not too sure about the Wilder situation” Joshua stated 

Therefore, outside of the Wilder fight, Kabayel has been mentioned. The former has the EBU heavyweight title, with his biggest win arguably being over Dereck Chisora. With that being said, this is what Hearn had to say.

AJ’s Next Opponent

“Kabayel has been mentioned. We appreciate that it won’t be a mega-fight, but he’s [Joshua] okay with that. He wants to get back in the ring and keep himself active while he waits for those mega-fights. “Really, there’s two fights that AJ needs to have before he retires, and that’s Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury. For me, he has to have those fights next year, and that’s the plan. What he’s not going to do is be inactive like a lot of these guys,” Hearn said

Nevertheless, the date of December 23rd could pose a problem. Tyson Fury’s representative had confirmed the same date for the Oleksandr Usyk fight for the undisputed heavyweight championship of the world.

And if that does end up materializing, the amount of people tuning in to see Joshua in a non-title fight will no doubt be a lot less. In addition, the date has also been mentioned as a possible fight date for Chris Eubank Jr. vs. Conor Benn.

Despite the latter currently facing legal troubles over two failed VADA tests for Clomiphene, if those obstacles are overcome, then a Joshua fight could be impacted too since Eubank-Benn is capable of standing on its own.

And at a time when boxing fans have questioned Joshua’s level of opposition of late, a fight against Kabayel may not be enough to pacify the critics. After all, can Joshua win another world title moving forward?

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