Anthony Joshua to fight Kubrat Pulev in London

LONDON: Anthony Joshua confirmed on Monday that he will defend his world heavyweight titles against Kubrat Pulev in London on June 20.

The British boxer posted a picture of himself wearing his belts on his Twitter feed with the words “June 20th”. Joshua, 30, regained the WBA, IBF and WBO titles with a unanimous points win over Andy Ruiz Jr in Saudi Arabia in December. That victory saw the Briton avenge the first defeat of his professional career, in New York last June.

Joshua is set to face Bulgaria’s Pulev, 38, at the new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in north London for what will be the 62,000 capacity football ground’s first boxing bout. Pulev, who is the mandatory challenger for Joshua’s IBF title, pulled out of a scheduled meeting with the Briton in 2017 due to injury.

But in a Facebook post on Monday, Pulev’s camp said: “The contract between the two countries is already officially signed and the battle between the Bulgarian boxer, who is a mandatory contender for the belt of the International Boxing Federation (IBF)... is guaranteed!”

Pulev added: “I am happy that I will be able to show the world how strong I really am.”