Anthony Joshua’s return to boxing has been delayed after the British heavyweight revealed that he requires elbow surgery.
The two-time heavyweight champion has been out of action since a knockout defeat to Daniel Dubois at Wembley in September that served as a significant blow to his hopes of fighting Tyson Fury in a long-rumoured bout.
While promoter Eddie Hearn has suggested that the encounter could still happen, Joshua admitted that he must first concentrate on “getting my body right” before thinking about a return.
"I've got to have a little surgery on my elbow, a small surgery, sometime in May," Joshua told broadcaster DAZN while watching Canelo Alvarez beat William Scull from ringside.
"That will see me out of the gym for maybe six to eight weeks and then, as soon as I'm healed, I'll be back."
The 35-year-old has won 28 of his 32 professional fights, though lost his titles in the first of back-to-back defeats to Oleksandr Usyk in 2021.
While Fury has again announced his retirement from boxing, the towering heavyweight has hinted that may consider a comeback, with an encounter with another top British talent in Joshua perhaps an appealing prospect.
The pair have been connected with a bout regularly as each forged highly-successful careers but are yet to meet in the ring.
