By Agency Reports
The organisers of Anthony Joshua vs Daniel Dubois are facing a second setback – just two days after Liam Smith withdrew from his undercard bout with Josh Kelly.
The card now faces another major obstacle as Josh Warrington may miss the opportunity to become a two-weight world champion, despite securing a shot at IBF super-featherweight champion Anto Cacace..
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Dubois will defend his IBF heavyweight boxing title against two-time former champion Joshua in a headline fight at Wembley Stadium on Saturday, September 21. But despite the eagerly awaited showdown between the two Brits proceeding as scheduled, the card – backed by Saudi-funded Riyadh Season – has encountered issues with other fights in the lead-up.
Former WBO light-middleweight champion Smith suddenly fell ill with a virus and announced he would be withdrawing from his bout with contender Kelly on the weekend. The loss of an ex-champion like Smith from the card is undoubtedly a significant setback, but organisers have since salvaged the fight with Ishmael Davis stepping in to take on Kelly.
However, organisers are still grappling with a separate problem as they wait to see if Warrington’s match with Cacace will remain a title fight. Warrington, who has twice held the IBF featherweight title, is moving up a division to face the Irishman.
The IBF has so far refused to ratify Warrington as a challenger for the 9st 4lb division title, given that he hasn’t competed in the weight class for over ten years and has never been ranked. Those involved are desperately petitioning for the IBF to approve the fight as Cacace’s first defence after his victory over Joe Cordina in May to win the belt.
Organisers are waiting on the IBF to approve Josh Warrington’s title fight (Image: (Image: Getty))
As reported by the Daily Star, however, they remain confident that the bout will get IBF approval by the weekend.
Warrington’s last victory dates back to 2022 when he beat Kiko Martinez to regain the IBF featherweight belt. However, the Leeds fighter lost the title during his first defence, narrowly outpointed by Luis Alberto Lopez later in the same year. Last year, Warrington challenged Leigh Wood for the WBA title from Leigh Wood at 9st but was stopped in the seventh round while leading on the scorecards.
After managing to secure Davis as Smith’s replacement, Matchroom Boxing released a statement on Monday which read: “The unbeaten Ishmael Davis (13-0, 6KOs) has been confirmed to take on Josh Kelly as part of Riyadh Season Wembley Card this Saturday September 21 in London. The Leeds-born fighter gets the opportunity to go toe-to-toe with Kelly at Wembley Stadium this weekend, following the withdrawal of Liam Smith due to a virus.
“The fight is part of a stacked card at England’s national stadium on Saturday, headlined by Daniel Dubois’ first defence of his IBF heavyweight title against two-time former unified heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua in front of what is expected to be a record crowd for a UK boxing event.”
A staggering 96,000 fans are expected to descend upon Wembley Stadium to witness one of the year’s most eagerly awaited boxing events. The clash between Joshua and Dubois marks AJ’s 13th world title fight, where he will look to claim the IBF title and secure historic status as a three-time world champion.