We will find out in just over 24 hours just who is fighting on that much-hyped Eddie Hearn vs Frank Warren 5 on 5 card on June 1 – but if the latest intel is correct, it includes a pair of heavyweight BLOCKBUSTERS.
Way back in January, the seeds of a card pitting the stables of Britain’s two biggest boxing promoters were sowed when Turki Alalshikh put forward the idea at a press conference to announce Anthony Joshua vs Francis Ngannou.
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Since then the show got an incredible fight to top the bill – that light-heavyweight unification beauty which sees Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol become a reality at last. That of course is not even including in the 5 vs 5 portion of the card. So which fights actually are?
Hearn vs Warren 5 on 5 fights
So these are the fights currently being mooted for the Hearn vs Warren showdown:
Deontay Wilde 43-3-1) vs Zhilei Zhang (26-2-1)
This would be the epitome of a heavyweight blockbuster – two powerful giants locking horns. And both with points to prove.
Both men are coming off upset losses to a certain Joseph Parker – Wilder in December 2023 and Zhang on the Joshua vs Ngannou undercard last month.
If this fight does happen, it leaves Parker looking for a fresh dance partner in his next fight (Zhang had a one-way rematch clause after their March meeting). Might explain those recent hilarious callout videos to Dillian Whyte and Anthony Joshua.
Filip Hrgovic (17-0) vs Daniel Dubois (20-2)
This would be another intriguing heavyweight matchup, and according to hugely respected former ESPN writer Dan Rafael it is likely to be for the vacant IBF heavyweight title.
Rafael, and most of the rest of the boxing media world, expect that IBF title to be vacated after Fury vs Usyk and before June 1 – leaving Brit Dubois and Croatian star Hrgovic to fight for it.
READ MORE: Latest heavyweight rankings after wins for Jared Anderson and Efe Ajagba
The smart money then appears to be that a certain Anthony Joshua will face the winner at Wembley Stadium in September. Watch this space.
When will the 5 on 5 be announced?
Not long now fight fans. A press conference in London on Monday (April 15) will confirm all of the fights, and likely the TV details.
The presser will begin at 1700 local UK time. That’s 1800 in Central Europe, Noon Eastern Standard Time or 0900 PST on the West Coast.
We’ll embed the live stream on Furyjoshua.com so you can watch without leaving the website.
