New Joe Joyce opponent named as Filip Hrgovic after Dillian Whyte injury

Joe Joyce will now fight Filip Hrgovic in April, as the Croatian steps in for the injured Dillian Whyte.

Joyce and Whyte were due to meet in an all-British clash on 5 April, headlining at the Co-op Live arena in Manchester, but the match-up was derailed by a severe cut to one of Whyte’s fingers.

Joyce, 39, will instead face Hrgovic 32, as each heavyweight tries to bounce back from defeat.

In Joyce’s last bout, the Olympic silver medalist was outpointed by Derek Chisora in July. Meanwhile, Hrgovic – an Olympic bronze medalist – was stopped by Daniel Dubois in June.

Hrgovic’s loss to Dubois was the first of his professional career, while Joyce has three defeats to his name. Prior to his loss to Chisora, Joyce was stopped by Zhilei Zhang twice in 2023.

The 5 April card at Co-op Live suffered another hit this week, as Lawrence Okolie sustained a hand injury that ruled him out of his scheduled bout against Richard Riakporhe.

Riakporhe was due to move up to heavyweight for that contest, after Okolie did the same in December – with both Britons having made their name at cruiserweight. It is unclear whether Riakporhe will get a new opponent or if his grudge match with Okolie will be rescheduled.