“The plan for AJ is to beat Prenga, beat Tyson Fury, to fight for the world heavyweight title,” Eddie Hearn told IFL TV.
Prenga has quietly built a knockout heavyweight record and has recently been linked to several heavyweight bouts. Hearn admitted Joshua cannot afford to overlook him even though most fans have already focused on Fury.
“He’s been in the hat for a couple of heavyweight fights. I think he’s got 22 wins, 21 knockouts, something like that,” Hearn said. “Legal fighter. Not an elite world heavyweight, but fringe world level. Dangerous. Can hit.”
Joshua enters the fight with more pressure on him than Prenga. Another poor performance, even in victory, would raise new doubts after the knockout loss to Daniel Dubois. Prenga, meanwhile, enters the fray with little to lose and the type of opportunity that could completely change his career overnight.
Another question is which version of Joshua appears under trainer Ben Davison. The aggressive punch against Francis Ngannou and Jake Paul looked very different from the hesitant fighter stopped by Dubois.
Hearn expects Joshua Prenga to stop before the Fury fight moves forward later this year.
“I think he’s fired up in an exciting fight in the first six rounds,” Hearn said. “And when he does, I’ll be the most relieved man to go because you’ve got the Tyson Fury fight and it’s happening in November.”
Hearn also said Fury vs. Joshua is effectively agreed, although both heavyweights still need to win their next bouts.
“Yeah, all good, it’s all done,” Hearn said of Fury-Joshua. “We just have to win.”
The fight is expected to take place in the UK, with Wembley Stadium and Cardiff both mooted as possible venues for the heavyweight showdown.
Joshua has not fought since he knocked out Jake Paul in the sixth round on December 19, 2025 in Miami, Florida, while Fury remained inactive after his second loss to Oleksandr Usyk.
If both heavyweights make it through their planned rematches, their long-delayed fight will still rank among boxing’s biggest events.
