Next Anthony Joshua fight: how to watch AJ vs Jermaine Franklin on UK TV - ringwalks, date, record and purse

Anthony Joshua will be returning to the ring for the first time since his defeat to Ukrainian Oleksandr Usyk as he begins to rebuild his reputation. The Briton will take on America’s Jermaine Franklin who will enter the ring off the back of a controversial defeat to Dillian Whyte.

The ‘989 Assassin’ claimed he was ‘robbed’ by the judges. This was his first fight in the UK and he will now prepare for his second English bout against the former two-time heavyweight champion Joshua.

Joshua made a blistering start when breaking through the professional ranks, winning a world title in just his 16th fight with 16 knockouts. However, he has since lost three out of his last five fights. Following his defeat to Usyk, Joshua said: “When I fought Usyk I felt like I let a lot of people down. (People said) his mind ain’t in it, where’s his head at? His head’s not in the game. That’s not the truth - my heart’s in the game, fully. This is all I have, really.”

Here is all you need to know ahead of Joshua’s upcoming fight against Franklin...

When is Joshua vs Franklin?

The 12-round heavyweight bout will take place on Saturday 1 April. London’s O2 Arena will host the bout and Joshua has a 7-0 record at the venue. The undercard will get underway at 6pm with the main event expected to start around 10.30pm depending on the previous clashes.

How to watch Joshua vs Franklin

The bout will be available to watch on DAZN with coverage starting at 7pm. Fans can sign up to DAZN for £9.99/month to watch the bout and talkSPORT will also have coverage of the fight. Undercard coverage will start at 7.30pm on talkSPORT2 before switching over to talkSPORT for the main event at 9pm.

Undercard

• Main EVENT: Anthony Joshua vs Jermaine Franklin
• Matteo Signani vs Felix Cash
• Austin Williams vs River Wilson-Bent
• Fabio Wardley vs Michael Polie Coffie
• Campbell Hatton vs Louis Fielding
• Jordan Flynn vs Kane Baker
• John Hedges vs Daniel Bocianski
• Ziyad Almaayouf vs TBA
• Peter Kadiru vs TBA
• Juergen Uldedaj vs TBA

What’s the pair’s record?

Jermaine Franklin stands at 6ft2in tall (188cm) and has a reach of 77inches. He fights in an orthodox stance and the fighter from Michigan has won 21 of his 22 fights. 14 of his 21 wins were won by knockout.

His opponent is 6ft6 (198cm) and has a reach of 82in. Aged 33, Joshua has won 24 of his27 fights and 22 of his 24 wins were won by knockout.

What’s been said?

Speaking to talkSPORT, Joshua said: “Are we going to see something different? You can’t really say that, I’ll be lying to you if I was like, I’m going to do this, I’m going to come out with southpaw.

“I’m going to go in there and do what the f*** I do and I’m going to get this win. That’s what I’m focusing on. Let me go in there and do my job, I’m going to do my best, I’m not going to make it over complicated, I’m a good fighter. I’ve got a good jab, good defence, good right hand, good uppercut and I’ll find the gaps needed to break my opponent down.”

Speaking about his fighter, Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn spoke to talkSPORT saying: “He’s a man who in my opinion is an elite heavyweight, he’s a top three heavyweight, who wants to comeback and regain his heavyweight world title. He’s the purest individual, he’s the hardest worker, he makes more sacrifices and commitments than any athlete I’ve ever seen and he’s my mate, so I’m pumped for his return.

“I want him to go in there and show people how good he is. I want him to believe in himself, I want him to enjoy life and I want him to appreciate what he’s achieved and I want him to go in there and make a statement.”