Report: Anthony Joshua to Face Jermaine Franklin on April 1
Multiple reports has confirmed that Anthony Joshua is set to face American Heavyweight Jermaine Franklin on April 1, 2023.
Daily Mail first reported on Monday that Jermaine Franklin is finalized as Joshua’s next opponent. Now, Boxing Scene has reported that both fighters have agreed to the terms for the fight.
Earlier, Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn revealed the three-part plan to rebuild Joshua’s career. The first part one would see Joshua returning to action against a top-15 opponent on April 1 at the O2 Arena in London, UK. Australian Heavyweight Demsey McKean was also in the running to face Joshua on this date.
Hearn’s further plans include a fight against Dillian Whyte later in the summer before a mega showdown either against Deontay Wilder or Tyson Fury in the last quarter of 2023.
Anthony Joshua, former unified World Heavyweight Champion, is coming off back-to-back losses to Oleksandr Usyk. As part of the so-called rebuild, Joshua has changed his trainer team once again and has now subscribed to the services of Derrick James. James also trained unified Welterweight World Champion Errol Spence Jr.
Jermaine Franklin was last seen facing Dillian Whyte in November 2021 and went very close to pulling off an upset against him. After Franklin proved to be a tricky opponent, Whyte was ultimately able to get a majority decision in his favor.
This was Franklin’s first loss in his professional boxing career. However, his performance in that bout made him one of the front runners to face Joshua next.
