Promoter Eddie Hearn ignited significant speculation in April 2025 regarding Anthony Joshua’s next opponent, teasing the potential for a high-profile showdown in America, contingent on one major condition.
At the time of Hearn’s comments, Joshua was navigating the aftermath of what was considered his most devastating defeat yet, a world title fight in the UK where he was beaten badly by Daniel Dubois. Hearn had floated the idea of a rematch with Dubois or a clash with Tyson Fury as ideal scenarios. However, with Fury having announced his retirement and Dubois seemingly on a path towards another encounter with Oleksandr Usyk, these options appeared unlikely. Instead, Hearn pointed to a different, long-anticipated opponent: Jarrell Miller, a fighter Joshua was originally scheduled to face years prior before Miller was replaced due to a failed drug test.
“Yeah, the beef is real,” Hearn told reporters. “If ‘Big Baby’ beats Fabio, why not? I think AJ would love to have another fight in America. AJ will fight anyone. I think the ‘Big Baby’ fight is a big fight.”
Jarrell ‘Big Baby’ Miller had been slated as the opponent for Joshua’s highly anticipated US debut in 2019. However, after his positive tests for performance-enhancing drugs, Miller was promptly pulled from the card and replaced by Andy Ruiz Jr., who would go on to shock the world by stopping Joshua in the seventh round.
Joshua’s Heavyweight Journey and the Dubois Upset
Anthony Joshua’s career has been a rollercoaster of highs and lows since his initial loss to Andy Ruiz Jr. While he recovered his unified heavyweight titles in a rematch against Ruiz, he later suffered two significant defeats to Oleksandr Usyk, marking major hurdles in his quest to reclaim undisputed status. Leading up to April 2025, Joshua had rebuilt momentum with a series of impressive victories, including stoppages over Otto Wallin in December 2023, Robert Helenius in August 2023, and a dominant performance against Francis Ngannou in March 2024.
However, the “devastating defeat” Hearn referenced occurred on September 21, 2024, at Wembley Stadium, where Joshua challenged Daniel Dubois for the IBF heavyweight title. Dubois, who had been elevated to full IBF champion in June 2024 after Oleksandr Usyk vacated the belt, delivered a stunning performance. In what was considered a major upset, Dubois defeated Joshua via fifth-round knockout, retaining his title. Joshua was knocked down multiple times throughout the bout, including in the first, third, and fourth rounds, before the decisive knockout in the fifth.
The Unfulfilled Miller Showdown and Shifting Fortunes
The proposed fight between Anthony Joshua and Jarrell Miller hinged on Miller’s performance against Fabio Wardley. Miller’s recent record at the time included a loss to Daniel Dubois by technical knockout in the closing seconds of their December 23, 2023, fight, which took place on the undercard of Joshua’s bout with Otto Wallin. Miller also fought to a majority draw with Andy Ruiz Jr. on August 3, 2024, a bout that many observers felt Miller had done enough to win.
Fabio Wardley, the other half of the crucial prerequisite fight, had indeed delivered a memorable performance against Frazer Clarke. Their initial clash on March 31, 2024, for the British and Commonwealth heavyweight titles, ended in a hard-fought split-decision draw. However, in their highly anticipated rematch on October 12, 2024, in Riyadh, Wardley secured a devastating first-round knockout victory over Clarke, who suffered a broken jaw in the process.
Despite the stage being set for Miller to potentially earn his shot at Joshua, the proposed fight against Fabio Wardley, scheduled for June 7, 2025, never materialized. In late April 2025, Jarrell Miller was forced to withdraw from the bout due to a shoulder injury sustained during training camp. This withdrawal meant the condition set by Eddie Hearn for a Joshua-Miller fight was not met, effectively sidelining the “Big Baby” from a potential mega-fight with AJ. Wardley subsequently faced Justis Huni on June 7, 2025, winning by knockout and earning “Knockout of the Year” honors from several boxing publications.
The Evolving Heavyweight Landscape
Following his impressive victory over Anthony Joshua, Daniel Dubois’s career continued to ascend. The speculation that he would face Oleksandr Usyk again proved accurate. A highly anticipated rematch for the undisputed heavyweight championship took place on July 19, 2025, at Wembley Stadium. In a dominant performance, Usyk defeated Dubois via fifth-round knockout, reclaiming his undisputed status. However, Dubois quickly rebounded, and in May 2026, he secured the WBO heavyweight title by stopping Fabio Wardley in the 11th round in what was hailed as a “Fight of the Year” candidate.
Tyson Fury, who was “retired” at the time of the original article’s publication in April 2025, had indeed stepped away from the sport after suffering two consecutive losses to Oleksandr Usyk in May and December 2024, relinquishing his heavyweight titles. However, the “Gypsy King” reversed his decision and announced his return to boxing in 2026. His comeback fight against Arslanbek Makhmudov is scheduled for April 11, 2026, in the UK, to be streamed live on Netflix.
Anthony Joshua’s Path Forward and a Long-Awaited Clash
Anthony Joshua’s journey took an unexpected turn in December 2025 when he was involved in a serious car accident in Nigeria, which tragically resulted in the deaths of two of his close friends. Joshua sustained minor injuries but later confirmed his intention to return to the ring. He is now scheduled for a comeback fight on July 25, 2026, in Saudi Arabia, against Albanian heavyweight Kristian Prenga.
Despite the detours and the unfulfilled promise of a Jarrell Miller clash, the heavyweight division continues to churn out mega-fights. The long-awaited showdown between Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury, a fight that fans have clamored for for years, has now been officially signed for the fourth quarter of 2026. This monumental bout promises to be one of the biggest events in boxing history, finally bringing together two of Britain’s most iconic heavyweights to settle their rivalry in the ring, a testament to their enduring star power despite the unpredictable twists and turns of their respective careers.
