Anthony Joshua has suffered a fresh setback in his return to boxing.
The former two-time world heavyweight champion was last in action in September when he was on the wrong end of a fifth round knockout defeat to IBF heavyweight champion Daniel Dubois.
Despite the loss, it was hoped that Joshua would then head into a long-awaited showdown with Tyson Fury following Fury’s fight with Oleksandr Usyk in December, but those plans were scuppered when ‘The Gypsy King’ announced his surprise retirement in January.
It means that boxing fans have spent the last few months wondering who Joshua would instead take on next, but it seems that they will have to wait a little bit longer.
Joshua was in attendance at the Canelo Alvarez vs. William Scull fight in Saudi Arabia, where he revealed he is dealing with a new injury that will require surgery when he was asked by DAZN when he will return.
“When do you want me back people? I’m trying to get my body right. I’ve got to have surgery on my elbow. A small surgery sometime in May. That will see me out the gym for maybe 6-8 weeks. As soon as I’m healed I’ll be back.”
A delay of up to eight weeks means Joshua may be unable to return to the gym until at least July, all but ruling out a return to action this summer and meaning it is likely that ‘AJ’ will have been out of the ring for around a year by the time he returns.
It’s still unknown who Joshua could possibly face next when he returns, but a clash against long-term rival Deontay Wilder still remains a possibility.
