Eddie Hearn drops hint on Anthony Joshua’s retirement

Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn has revealed that two-time Nigerian-born British heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua plans to have three fights, to become a three-time world champion before retiring from boxing.

Hearn, who manages Anthony Joshua, made this disclosure during an interview with talkSPORT, emphasizing that the former unified champion remains determined to reclaim heavyweight gold.

“The plan and the goal for Anthony Joshua, from now until the moment he retires, is to try and win the World Heavyweight Championship,” Hearn stated.

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“To try and become a three-time World Heavyweight Champion.

“The fight he wanted the most, which isn’t currently available, is Tyson Fury. But if you asked AJ what he wants next, he would say, ‘I want to fight the winner of Dubois vs. Parker. I want another shot at a World Heavyweight title.”

“There’s no doubt in AJ’s mind about who he wants to fight, and he’s ready to step back into the ring with Dubois at any moment because he wants the gold. We probably have only another year left—two fights, three fights max.”

Among potential matchups, a clash between Joshua and Fury would generate the most excitement among British fans. However, Fury recently announced his retirement following his second loss to Usyk in December 2024.

“Hi everybody, I’m going to make this short and sweet,” Fury said in a social media video. “I’d like to announce my retirement from boxing. It’s been a blast, I’ve loved every single minute of it.”

With Fury seemingly out of the picture, Joshua’s path to a third world title remains uncertain, but his ambition to retire as a three-time heavyweight champion remains unwavering.

Joshua initially won his first 22 professional fights before suffering a shocking defeat to Andy Ruiz Jr. in June 2019, losing his WBA, IBF, and WBO heavyweight titles.

Though he avenged the loss in a rematch later that year, he has since been defeated twice by Oleksandr Usyk and was most recently knocked out by Daniel Dubois in September 2024.