Joshua to face Ruiz rematch before end of year: Hearn

Anthony Joshua will attempt to reclaim his heavyweight titles from Andy Ruiz Jr. before the end of year after activating a rematch clause in his contract, promoter Eddie Hearn said.

In a brief post on Twitter, Hearn said Joshua had opted for an immediate rematch against Ruiz Jr, who shocked the boxing world with a seventh-round knockout of the British fighter on Saturday.

"After meetings with AJ, (trainer) Rob (McCracken) and the management team in NY, we have today triggered the contracted rematch clause with Andy Ruiz Jnr," Hearn wrote.

"The fight will take place in Nov/Dec at a venue to be confirmed shortly."
"We've talked about it and it's happening. There's no other fight AJ wants, so there was no point waiting 30 days. Everybody needs clarity. We sat down and it wasn't even a case of him asking what else is out there. The rematch is the fight we need, and that's what we'll be doing."