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British heavyweight Joe Joyce will face Croatian fighter Filip Hrgovic in a replacement bout on April 5 at Manchester’s Co-op Live arena.
Joyce, 39, was originally scheduled to fight Dillian Whyte, but the South Londoner was forced to withdraw due to a hand injury.
Hrgovic, 32, stepped in to replace Whyte after suffering the first loss of his professional career against Daniel Dubois last June. Joyce beat Dubois back in 2020 when an eye injury left Dubois unable to continue.
“It’s a tough fight for both of them,” said promoter Frank Warren in an interview with Ring Magazine. “It’s exactly the same fight Joe had against Dillian. The winner goes on, and the loser is going to have to think about what he does.”
Joe Joyce versus Filip Hrgovic reignites old Olympic feud
Both fighters have Olympic backgrounds, having competed in the super-heavyweight category at the 2012 Games. Joyce secured a silver medal in London, while Hrgovic took home bronze. The two also faced off as amateurs in 2013, with Joyce emerging victorious.
Joyce enters the fight at a crossroads in his career after suffering consecutive defeats to Zhilei Zhang in 2023 and a loss to Derek Chisora last July. Meanwhile, Hrgovic aims to bounce back from his first professional setback. The Croatian holds a win, albeit a controversial one, over Zhang after the pair fought in 2022.
In a further shake-up to the fight card, former cruiserweight world champion Lawrence Okolie has been forced out of his scheduled heavyweight bout against Richard Riakporhe due to an injury sustained in training.
Warren stated that it remains unclear whether Riakporhe will stay on the card. However, undefeated heavyweight prospect Moses Itauma, 20, has been added to the event, though his opponent has not yet been announced.
Also on the card, David Adeleye, who stopped Solomon Dacres in 80 seconds, faces off against Jeamie TKV.
The Manchester event, which is Queensberry’s first with DAZN, promises high stakes for both Joyce and Hrgovic as they vie to keep their world title ambitions alive.
