Eddie Hearn Reveals Anthony Joshua Is Targeted To Return April 1, Will Train In The US

Eddie Hearn says Anthony Joshua will likely return on April 1.

After Joshua lost back-to-back fights to Oleksandr Usyk it was uncertain when he would fight again, but he had said he wanted to return in December. Yet, that never happened and now according to his promoter, he will likely return on April 1 after he does his training camp in the United States.

“He is gonna train in America, and he’ll start that camp in the next week,” Hearn said on The DAZN Boxing Show on Monday. “He’ll be flying out. You guys will get the news soon. … Like I said, AJ’s his own man, and something like that (announcing his new trainer) is for him to confirm once he’s happy to confirm it… April 1 is the targeted date in London. Really, I have a call (today) to go through the final list of opponents, the final, you know, bits and pieces around the date. We’re almost ready, really. He’s excited.”

Eddie Hearn says he is happy with the trainer Anthony Joshua picked and he also thinks Joshua will do much better leaving the UK. He believes the former champ will be able to focus on training and not be the center of attention as whenever he goes out he gets stopped in the UK.

“The problem is, being in the UK, he can’t breathe, you know?” Hearn said. “When he goes to America, people still know who he is, but it’s just a different world. Can you imagine that Anthony Joshua, where he’s gonna be training, can rent a house or stay in a hotel, and can go for a walk and go and sit in a coffee shop and have a bit of breakfast and a bit of coffee with some friends, and, yeah, someone might come over and go, ‘AJ, man, how you doin’?’ But literally, that is an impossibility (in the UK). He can go to the mall and have a nice stroll around and pop into Foot Locker … and just be normal. Like, live a normal life that people should be allowed to do. It’s just a pressure cooker. It’s just a pressure cooker.

“Because he’s that guy, because he’s that ambassador, because he’s that role model, he’ll never turn down a photo, he’ll never turn down a conversation,” Hearn added. “So, it’s like, you don’t realize how much that’s going to drain you when you’re doing two or three sessions a day. I think it’s gonna be really good for him. I really feel like you’re gonna see a reinvigorated Anthony Joshua in April and I can’t wait to see him back.”

Who do you think Anthony Joshua will fight in April?