Anthony Joshua breaks silence on boxing comeback after Fury fight | Boxing | Sport
Former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua has broken his silence as his boxing return was confirmed. The 36-year-old will fight Kristian Prenga on July 25 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia as part of his preparations to fight Gypsy King, Tyson Fury.
Joshua will return to the ring in July, seven months after his knockout win over YouTuber-turned-boxer, Jake Paul. The former Team GB Olympian easily dispatched the American in Miami, breaking Paul’s jaw in the process. The news comes after Turki Alalsheikh posted a cryptic post to X that the highly-anticipated fight between Joshua and Fury had been signed. Both Fury and Joshua have dominated the heights of heavyweight boxing but after frequent talks, the pair never touched gloves in the squared circle.
On Monday, it was announced that Joshua will fight Albania knockout specialist, Prenga, in a warm-up fight in the Middle East. n a post to Instagram, he wrote: “Back active. July 25th. Live on DAZN.”
The 35-year-old has lost just once in 21 fights but all 20 of his wins have come by way of knockout. The likes of Joe Jones, Brandon Carmack and Willie Jake Jr have all fallen in Prenga’s destructive wake.
Fury marked his latest comeback from retirement with a unanimous decision victory over Arslanbek Makhmudov earlier this month. Joshua was in attendance to see the 37-year-old get 12 rounds under his belt and with his foe at ringside, Fury took the opportunity to call out his heavyweight rival.
Fury said: “Thank you everyone for coming out tonight. I really appreciate every single one of you guys. 16 months out and we fill up Tottenham again. But like I said, let me get Arslanbek Makhmudov out the way and we’ll talk next.
“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. Here’s my challenge. I challenge you Anthony Joshua, to fight me, Tyson Fury, the Gypsy King, NEXT! Do you accept my challenge? Let him say yes or no now. Come on you big s***house, are you going to fight or not?”
The showdown between the pair received a new lease of life as they stared down eachother following Fury’s victory at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Joshua said: “Tyson you’re a clout chaser. I’ve never had no problem getting in the ring with you.
“I punched you up when we were kids. And after watching you here tonight, I’ll punch you up again. With all due respect, tonight is your night and you know I’ll sit across that ring from you in due time. You ain’t going to tell me what to do. I’ve been chasing you for the last 10 years. When you’re ready, you come and see me and tell me your terms and conditions and I’ll have you in the ring when I’m ready. “I’m the boss. You work for me. I’m the landlord, remember that, you work for me.”
