ANTHONY JOSHUA offered a quick response to a training offer from UFC welterweight champion Islam Makhachev.
AJ met mixed martial arts’ pound-for-pound king backstage at PFL Dubai last Saturday.
The Watford warrior was given backstage access to meet main eventer Usman Nurmagomedov, whom he’d previously met during his time in the Emirate.
Joshua, 36, had a brief conversation with Makhachev, saying: “Let me show you something.”
A perplexed Makhachev replied “My shirt.”
The Russian then invited AJ to train with him in his native Dagestan, saying: “You have to come bro [to Dagestan], not just t-shirt.”
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Joshua accepted the offer, responding with a reference to Makhachev’s viral “two-three years and Dagestan and forget” meme.
He replied: “Maybe for two-three weeks, not years.”
Hours after Nurmagomedov retained his lightweight title with a third-round submission of Alfie Davis, Joshua posted a snap of himself with UFC icon Khabib and a video of his chat with Makhachev to his Instagram.
His accompanying caption read: “No hype, just real. @Khabib_Nurmagomedov @Islam_Makhachev.”
The Home of Boxing in 2026
There’s a massive year of boxing ahead!
It’s shaping up to be a blockbuster year of action inside the boxing ring.
Tyson Fury will make his return in April against Arslanbek Makhmudov, Conor Benn is closing in on a world title shot and Fabio Wardley will defend his newly won heavyweight crown.
Canelo Alvarez will be hoping to return after his defeat to Terence Crawford and heavyweight king Oleksandr Usyk will also need to defend his straps.
Derek Chisora will fight for the 50th and (perhaps) final time against Deontay Wilder, while Daniel Dubois is also on the comeback trail.
A whole bunch of British stars could also take a leap into superstardom, with the likes of Moses Itauma, Hamzah Sheeraz and Adam Azim ready to join the very top of the sport.
Here’s all the big fights coming up…
February
- Sat 21 – Ryan Garcia vs Mario Barrios – WBC welterweight title – DAZN PPV
- Sat 21 – Leigh Wood vs Josh Warrington – DAZN
- Sun 22 – Claressa Shields vs Franchon Crews-Dezurn – heavyweight unification – DAZN
- Sat 28 – Emanuel Navarrete vs Eduardo Nunez – super-featherweight unification – DAZN
March
- Sat 14 – Jazza Dickens vs Anthony Cacace – WBA super-featherweight title – DAZN
- Sat 28 – Moses Itauma vs Jermaine Franklin – DAZN
- Sat 28 – Sebastian Fundora vs Keith Thurman – Amazon Prime PPV
April
- Sat 4 – Derek Chisora vs Deontay Wilder – DAZN PPV
- Sat 11 – Tyson Fury vs Arslanbek Makhmudov – Netflix
And Makhachev immediately went to the comments section to continue his bid to get AJ to transition to MMA.
He wrote: “2-3 years improve wrestling and become MMA fighter.”
Joshua’s outing to PFL Dubai was his first appearance at a combat sports event since the fatal car crash which killed two of his friends and team members.
Latif Ayodele and Sina Ghami tragically lost their lives in a collision on the Lagos–Ibadan Expressway in Nigeria last December.
Joshua escaped the vehicle with minor injuries having switched seats before the crash.
The horrific ordeal has cast serious doubts over a ring return for the former two-time heavyweight champion.
AJ has yet to speak about his fighting future.
But he’s hinted that he still has business to carry out and that he wants to honour his fallen friends.