Heavyweight contender Anthony Joshua recently came face-to-face with former titleholder Mahmoud Charr, while his promoter Eddie Hearn confirmed ongoing discussions for a two-bout agreement.
AJ has been inactive since his knockout defeat to Daniel Dubois last September. He has also been recovering from elbow surgery, which kept him sidelined.
However, promoter Eddie Hearn revealed that negotiations for a pair of fights are underway with Saudi boxing figurehead Turki Alalshikh and Riyadh Season.
Hearn told BoxingScene: “We are actually discussing a two-fight deal with Riyadh Season. We’ve been doing that; [Turki Alalshikh] mentioned that on the night of Canelo-Scull when we had our meeting, and that’s the plan really. We want to box sometime this year, October, November, December.”
Meanwhile, Daniel Dubois, 27, is set for a rematch against Oleksandr Usyk, 38, on July 19 at Wembley Stadium. This comes two years after Dubois suffered a stoppage loss to the Ukrainian champion.
Usyk recently defeated Tyson Fury, 36, twice last year, leading to Fury`s unexpected retirement announcement in January.
Hearn still holds out hope that Fury will return to face Joshua, 35. The outcome of the upcoming undisputed title clash in London will also influence Joshua`s next career moves.
He commented: “We’ll see what happens with Dubois-Usyk. We’ll see what happens with Fury. If we don’t fight those guys, maybe we’ll fight one of those guys next year.”
Another fighter hoping to challenge Joshua is the Lebanon-born German, Mahmoud Charr, formerly known as Manuel Charr.
Charr previously held the WBA`s secondary heavyweight belt but lost it to Kubrat Pulev in December and has not competed since. He currently resides in Dubai, where Joshua recently vacationed before visiting Oman.
Charr had a tense staredown with Joshua, proclaiming: “There’s only one giant in Syria.”
The 40-year-old holds a record of 34 wins and 5 losses, including a notable defeat to Vitali Klitschko in 2012.
However, his career—and life—nearly ended in 2015 when he survived a drive-by shooting at a kebab shop in Essen, Germany.
He miraculously recovered, and his shooter, Youssef Hassan, was sentenced to five years in prison. Charr also underwent two hip operations following the incident.
Astonishingly, Charr returned to the ring just nine months after the shooting, marking a truly remarkable comeback.
He had fought 32 times before the attack, which resulted from a cowardly assault by a Facebook troll. The attacker had provoked Charr online by posting videos of his losses.
When Charr agreed to meet the online provocateur in person, he became the target of an assassination attempt.
Charr fought two tune-up bouts after the shooting but later required double hip replacement surgery in 2017 at the age of 32.
He told SunSport in 2022: “I am not afraid of anyone. Fear is a feeling and feelings can be controlled. Fear exists only in your mind.”
