Anthony Joshua responds to Eddie Hearn’s claims he may only fight once more after devastating loss to Daniel Dubois at Wembley Stadium

Eddie Hearn has shared Anthony Joshua’s response to his recent claim that the former champion may only have one to three fights left in his career following his devastating loss to Daniel Dubois at Wembley Stadium on Saturday night.

Dubois retained his IBF world heavyweight title with a career-defining performance, beating Joshua four times on floor and achieving a fifth-round knockout in front of a crowd of 98,000 fans.

While Hearn confirmed that a rematch clause exists and that Joshua will likely activate it soon, he also hinted that his star fighter’s career may be nearing the end.

In an interview with Charlie Parson of The Stomping GroundHearn revealed he had a heart-to-heart with Joshua, telling him he may only have one to three fights left after the brutal defeat.

According to Hearn, the conversation was a sobering moment for Joshua, who acknowledged that he is indeed on the ‘straight home’ of his illustrious career.

Joshua suffered the fourth defeat of his career on Saturday evening in front of 98,000 fans

Daniel Dubois knocked out AJ in the fifth round on Saturday with his fourth knockdown

Hear it explained: “I told AJ on the phone that you probably have one to three fights left. Then it became a bit quiet. He kind of realized, damn, we’re on the home straight. We really are.’

Hearn is confident that AJ – who is contracted for at least one more fight with the Saudis – will activate his rematch clause with Dubois, indicating that His Excellency Turki Alalshikh is also keen to see it again.

But given the one-sided nature of Saturday’s defeat, Joshua could take a different path back to the top and pursue a fight with Fury instead.

Fury will have his own rematch with Oleksandr Usyk in December after losing their first fight earlier this year.

Should he win, the Gypsy King could potentially mount a voluntary defense against Joshua to ultimately settle the score with his domestic rival.

Alternatively, another loss to Usyk could see Fury and Joshua both out of the title picture and free to fight each other in an attempt to get back into the mix.

Wilder is another fighter who has long been linked to Joshua, having held the WBC title between 2015 and 2020.

The teams of Joshua and Wilder were never able to agree on terms for an undisputed showdown before Fury stripped Wilder of his title.

Despite many not liking it, Dubois retained his IBF world heavyweight title at Wembley

AJ hurt Dubois a few times, but for the most part took a hit in front of 98,000 people

After the fight, Dubois insisted he still hasn’t reached “my potential” in the game of boxing

Wilder has lost his last two fights against Joseph Parker and Zhilei Zhang and turns 39 next month, but is considering a return to the ring and a fight with Joshua could be appealed.

If the fight happens, the winner could set their sights on one last attempt to become champion again, while the loser would likely sail off into the sunset.