Anthony Joshua is set to face American Jermaine Franklin in bid to resuscitate his career at the O2 Arena as he returns back to the ring after falling to successive defeats to Oleksandr Usyk.
The Nigerian-British boxer has not stepped foot in the ring since his second-successive defeat by Oleksandr Usyk in August 2022.
Anthony Joshua also lost the rematch which resulted into him loosing his WBA, WBO and IBF belts to the Ukrainian in September 2021.
Joshua has now agreed a deal to face Franklin who previously trained alongside Tyson Fury in the build up to his showdown with Dillian Whyte in November 2022.
This is a must-win fight for AJ as he looks to work his way back to the top of the heavyweight division.
As reported, Joshua and Franklin have agreed on the financials for the fight and has signed the final paperwork on Monday afternoon.
Joshua will be looking to reassert his dominance in the heavyweight division, while Franklin will be looking to bounce back from his defeat by Whyte in November 2022.
The fight between the two heavyweight boxers will take place in London at the O2 Arena on April 1.
All unification bout between Joshua and Tyson Fury was in the cards in December but negotiations between the two British boxers collapsed in October after the Gypsy King grew frustrated with how long AJ’s team were taking to sign the contract.
AJ was disappointed to see the deal fall through as they had made good progress – having agreed on the financial terms of the fight, splitting the purse 60/40 in the favor of the WBC champion.
The pair had also named the Principality Stadium in Cardiff as the chosen location and agreed on the TV rights – which were said to be stumbling block. However, it wasn’t meant to be.
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