The highly anticipated rematch between Anthony Joshua and IBF world champion Daniel Dubois has been postponed until 2026.
Dubois’ promoter, Frank Warren, confirmed the delay during an appearance on talkSPORT, explaining that Joshua would be “out of the picture” for a while due to mandatory challenger obligations.
“Daniel’s fight against AJ was his mandatory, so he’s allowed a period of time before making a voluntary defense. He can fight in February and has until April or May to do so,” Warren stated. “The next fight after that will involve whoever the mandatory challenger is, but it won’t be AJ, as he can’t get into a mandatory position. The next two guys, Kabayel and Bakole, are set to fight each other.”
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Joshua, who has earned over $200 million in his career, including $75 million from fights in 2024 alone, is still recovering from injuries sustained in his fifth-round knockout loss to Dubois at Wembley Stadium in September.
Promoter Eddie Hearn suggested that Joshua, 35, could return by summer, with one fight left on his Riyadh Season contract. “He had five fights in 18 months, so he’ll be fine. Back in the summer,” Hearn said.
Meanwhile, Dubois, 27, is expected to return to the ring in February before facing the winner of the eliminator bout between Martin Bakole and Agit Kabayel in the latter half of 2025.
The delay means both fighters will likely face different opponents before a possible rematch, as negotiations between the two camps have stalled for now.