According to promoter Eddie Hearn of Matchroom, there will be a British referee for the upcoming showdown between IBF, IBO, WBA, WBO heavyweight world champion Anthony Joshua and mandatory challenger Alexander Povetkin of Russia.
The contest is scheduled for September 22nd at Wembley in London.
"It will be an English ref. We're looking at an English ref with that fight because they're some of the best in the world," Hearn told Sky Sports.
When Joshua faced Joseph Parker in March, the fight was handled by Italy's Giuseppe Quartarone. And his contest with Wladimir Klitschlo, from April 2017, was handled by David Fields of the United States. And when it came to Joshua's title winning effort over Charles Martin in 2016, Belgium's Jean-Pierre Van Imschoot was the third man in the ring.
When it comes to Povetkin's side, Hearn indicates that there are no problems on their end with a British referee handling the fight.
"[Povetkin's promoters] World of Boxing are happy with a British ref," Hearn said. "It will have to be approved by the Board. British refs are the best in the world."
Povetkin was in action on the Joshua vs. Parker undercard in Cardiff, where he knocked out David Price in five rounds. That contest was refereed by Britain's Howard John Foster.
Last month, Parker lost a close twelve round unanimous decision against Dillian Whyte at the O2 Arena in Lond. Their fight was refereed by Brit Ian John-Lewis.
In that fight, Parker was knocked down in the second round as a result of a head clash. Lewis ruled it as a knockdown and that ruling played a big role in the scoring. Parker's handlers are likely going to appeal, because they believe the correct ruling would have made the contest a draw based on a two point swing with the final scores of 114-111, 113-112 and 115-110 coming down.
