After two tough losses to Oleksandr Usyk, former unified Heavyweight boxing champion, Anthony Joshua, looks to prove he still belongs among the elite when he battles Jermaine Franklin this afternoon (Sat., April 1, 2023) in London, England.

MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE coverage of today’s main event below. The DAZN broadcast kicks off at 2 p.m. ET, with Joshua and Franklin likely making the walk closer to 5:30 p.m. ET.

Franklin is coming off a narrow decision loss to Dillian Whyte, which showed that the previously untested American does indeed have the skills to hang with quality operators. Joshua is still a sizeable favorite thanks to his impressive body of work, but this is by no means a tune-up. “Joshua vs. Franklin” will also feature undefeated Heavyweight puncher, Fabio Wardley, squaring off with struggling colossus, Michael Polite Coffie, and the latest from Tokyo gold medalist, Galal Yafai.

Joshua Vs. Franklin Quick Results

Anthony Joshua vs. Jermaine Franklin — Joshua def. Franklin via unanimous decision (118-111, 117-111 x2)
Fabio Wardley vs. Michael Polite Coffie — Wardley def. Coffie by technical knockout in round four
Galal Yafai vs. Moises Calleros — Yafai def. Calleros via technical knockout in round four
Campbell Hatton vs. Louis Fielding — Hatton def. Fielding via knockout in round one
Austin Williams vs. River Wilson-Bent — Williams def. Wilson-Bent via technical knockout in round eight

Joshua Vs. Franklin Round-By-Round Updates:

Heavyweight: Anthony Joshua vs. Jermaine Franklin

Round one: Trading jabs to start. Joshua’s looks a bit sharper. Franklin cross met by a Joshua left hook. Short Franklin left hook into the clinch. Halfway through. They’re staying at long range for the most part, neither committing to much outside of the jab. Joshua body shot. Clinch. Another before the bell. Kind of a nothing round. 10-9 Joshua on the better jabs.

Round two: Still a jab battle early on. Decent right cross from Joshua into the clinch, prompting Franklin to shove him away and get admonished for it. Solid counter right lands for Joshua halfway through, kicking off a brief exchange. Joshua just misses with an uppercut and Franklin looks to answer to the body. Nice 1-2 from Franklin, body shots from Joshua in return and a clinch. Joshua’s nose is bleeding from that shot. Joshua sneaks in another left downstairs. 10-9, 20-18 Joshua.

Round three: Franklin tries to force his way in with a combo, can’t do so. Chopping right from Joshua in return. Head movement to get away from a combo. They trade in the center halfway through. Joshua straight right, Franklin 1-2, Joshua straight right. Franklin bullies his way in after eating a jab, can’t get much done. Franklin digs a hook downstairs, eats one upstairs and a right cross behind it at the bell. 10-9, 30-27 Joshua. All three competitive.

Round four: Things have yet to kick into gear, but Joshua’s reach and jab are winning him the fight thus far. Franklin tries to turn things up, can’t make any clean connections before getting clinched. More heavy Joshua jabs halfway through and he glides away from a flurry. Clinch. They trade in the center, solid right from Franklin. Clinch. Right hand to the body before the next clinch. Both swing hard in the center. There’s an uppercut from Joshua that kicks off a heavy exchange. 10-9, 40-36 Joshua.

Round five: Good cross from Joshua to open the round. Franklin wades in with a solid combo before tying up. Back to the jab battle, still favoring Joshua. Clinch. More jabs from Joshua, both fall short with 1-2s. Halfway through. Huge cross by Joshua, best shot of the fight. Franklin trying to come back with volume. Good exchange, Franklin caps it with a stiff jab. Franklin body shot, clinch. 10-9, 50-45 Joshua.

Round six: The story so far is Joshua’s jab and reach; Franklin just can’t seem to dirty it up or land anything significant enough to throw the bigger man off. Early clinch. Joshua digs to the body inside. There’s a solid right by Franklin before the next clinch. Halfway through. Corkscrew uppercut from Joshua met by a Franklin flurry. Both connect with hard right hands inside. Good 1-2 by Franklin seems to catch Joshua on the ear. Body shots, clinch. Late burst from Franklin. 10-9 Franklin, 59-55 Joshua.

Round seven: Joshua sneaks in a body shot as Franklin throws volume. Left hook just misses. Clinch. 1-2, clinch. Franklin to the body. Joshua’s jab still controlling the neutral. Halfway through. Clinch. Joshua to the body, clinch. Right cross connects. Franklin steps in and gets tied up. Another clinch, they trade on the break this time. 10-9, 69-64 Joshua.

Round eight: Joshua continuing to pile up the jabs and starting to add some right hands to the mix. Franklin shoves Joshua away and gets another warning from the ref. More clinching. Halfway through. Chopping right by Joshua. Clinch. More clinching. More clinching; Franklin’s trying to barrel in and Joshua’s tying him up every time. 10-9, 79-73 Joshua.

Round nine: Franklin just doesn’t have an answer for the punch-and-clutch. Doesn’t make for a particularly compelling fight, but the onus is on him to make Joshua stop. Halfway through. We’re not getting a lot of action between the clinches at this point. The ref pauses to warn them for something, and they do turn up a bit when they resume. Heavy right hand from Franklin. 10-9, 89-82 Joshua. Could give it to Franklin.

Round ten: There’s a solid exchange on the inside. Hard cross from Joshua afterwards. Back to the clinching. Joshua puts together a nice sequence, capped by an uppercut. Big 1-2 from Franklin halfway through. They’re trading leather at point blank. Ref separates them. Another clinch. 1-2 from Joshua, more jabs. Clinch. Franklin still trying to wade in with power. Cross and hook by Joshua in the last 10 seconds. 10-9, 99-91 Joshua.

Round eleven: Things slow back down a bit as Joshua settles into the jab groove. Clinch. Nasty body shot from Joshua and a hard uppercut behind it. Joshua fires an uppercut and Franklin comes back with a combo before tying up. Halfway through. Back to the clinching. Solid jab series from Joshua. Franklin sneaks an overhand right around the guard in the waning seconds, then eats a blatant shot on the break that the ref doesn’t seem to mind. 10-9, 109-100 Joshua.

Round twelve: Joshua still in full control, clinching when needed. Franklin shoves Joshua out of a clinch and gets a mild chiding. Clinch halfway through. Another. Solid right uppercut from Joshua. More holding. Both swing for a bit in the waning seconds before clinching again. 10-9, 119-109 Joshua. I could see maybe two more rounds for Franklin.

Final result: Joshua def. Franklin via unanimous decision

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