Saudi Arabia could host the Oleksandr Usyk-Anthony Joshua rematch in late June, according to the Ukrainian’s promoter Alexander Krassyuk.
Usyk beat Joshua last year to be crowned the unified heavyweight champion.
The rematch with Joshua had initially been planned for May but was pushed back after Usyk enlisted in Ukraine’s military following the Russian invasion.
Joshua could return to Saudi Arabia having regained his world title belts by beating Mexican Andy Ruiz Jr in the capital Riyadh in December 2019, after being knocked out by the Mexican in a shock knockout defeat six months earlier.
Usyk won the WBA, WBO and IBF belts from Joshua on a unanimous points decision at London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in September.
The rematch with Joshua, 32, had initially been targeted for May but was pushed back after Usyk enlisted in Ukraine’s military in March following the Russian invasion.
The 35-year-old left his native Ukraine, where he had been helping to defend the country, on 23 March.
When Joshua invoked a rematch clause in the contract for the first Usyk fight, despite suffering a comprehensive points defeat which almost ended in a knock-out, the return was originally scheduled for London next month.
Assuming Tyson Fury retains his WBC world title by defeating Dillian Whyte at Wembley on April 23, the winner between Joshua and Usyk will go on to another mammoth pay-day later this year.
The winner will be the undisputed world heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis.
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