5 things you need to know about Anthony Joshua’s next opponent ‘Kubrat The Cobra Pulev’

Anthony Joshua will face Kubrat Pulev, the IBF’s mandatory challenger, at Tottenham Hotspur’s 62,000-seater stadium on 20 June.

The Bulgarian confirmed the fight against the world IBF, WBA, WBO and IBO heavyweight champion on Monday.

Here’s all you need to know about “The Cobra” Pulev.

1, Kubrat Venkov Pulev is from Bulgaria: Кубрат Венков Пулев; born 4 May 1981.

2, He held the European heavyweight title twice between 2012 and 2016, and has challenged once for the unified world heavyweight title in 2014.

3, He is ranked as the world’s eighth best active heavyweight by BoxRec  and the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board and tenth by The Ring magazine.

4, On 23 March 2019, after defeating Bogdan Dinu,  Pulev forcibly kissed a female journalist Jennifer Ravalo on the lips during an interview. The  California State Athletic Commission responded by suspending Pulev’s licence.

5, On 24 July 2019, Pulev had his boxing license reinstated by the CSAC after he completed his sexual harassment prevention class, with a caveat that his license will be revoked if similar offenses were to occur.