In a bout live worldwide on DAZN, the 2012 Olympic gold medalist will make his comeback against Kristian Prenga on July 25 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

It is welcome news to boxing fans as Joshua hadn’t previously confirmed that he would box again following the tragic car accident that resulted in the death of two of his closest friends.

The devastating crash came just 10 days after Joshua knocked out Jake Paul in the sixth round of their blockbuster in Miami on December 19, which was the last time we saw the former two-time champion in the ring.

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Joshua destroys Jake Paul

Watch: Joshua vs Paul highlights

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Official confirmation about his comeback not only means we will get to see one of biggest stars in world boxing in action again, but also that his long-awaited showdown with Tyson Fury appears to be back on again for later in the year.

It looks as though the highly anticipated contest is finally set to happen towards the back end of 2026, so is Prenga a suitable tune-up fight for Joshua?

What does Prenga bring to the table?

While many fans may react to the news by asking ‘Kristian who?’, you only have to look at the Albanian’s record to know that he can bang.

With a CV of 20-1, the 35-year-old has stopped all 20 of his victims and Joshua can’t afford to overlook his 6’5” opponent, who now resides in the US.

There are more question marks than ever over Joshua’s punch resistance after he was dropped several times before being knocked out by Daniel Dubois in the fifth round of their slugfest at Wembley Stadium in September 2024.

That will give plenty of confidence to Prenga, who clearly has heavy hands and he will certainly fancy his chances of doing some damage if he can detonate one of his bombs on Joshua’s chin.

However, this is clearly a big step up in class for Prenga. He may not have lost in over nine years but he has never mixed with anyone anywhere near the class of Joshua.

While Prenga made it three first-round knockouts in a row when he halted Joe Jones on his latest outing in February, his level of opposition has been moderate to say the least and his victims have all had plenty of defeats against their name.

And ideal opponent for Joshua?

With that in mind, he could be the perfect comeback opponent for Joshua.

Prenga boasts enough power to get the respect of the Watford man and brings enough jeopardy to make things interesting, but he has boxed at a much lower level than Joshua and the latter should show is superior skillset.

An emphatic stoppage for Joshua would set things up perfectly for his showdown with Fury, which will surely be the biggest fight British boxing has ever seen.

Joshua's return will be live and exclusive on DAZN PPV and Ultimate Tier, a subscription package that includes PPV events, meaning no additional one-off fees for PPV events.

Benavidez vs. Zurdo on DAZN PPV

Watch David Benavidez versus Gilberto 'Zurdo' Ramirez on DAZN PPV on Saturday, May 2. Buy as a one-off PPV or get it included with the DAZN Ultimate Tier subscription, which also includes the Wardley vs. Dubois (May 9), Usyk vs. Verhoeven (May 23), Fury vs. Hall (June 13) and Zayas vs. Ennis (June 27) PPVs without any extra one-off costs.

For pricing, more information, and to sign up to watch, click here.