Fleetwood's Steve Gray to referee Anthony Joshua's Wembley title defence against Alexander Povetkin

Fleetwood boxing referee Steve Gray will be the man tasked with taking charge of Anthony Joshua's world heavyweight title defence at Wembley Stadium this Saturday.
By The Newsroom
Published 18th Sep 2018, 13:19 BST
Updated 18th Sep 2018, 14:22 BST
Steve Gray refereeing Jack Catterall's victory in JuneSteve Gray refereeing Jack Catterall's victory in June
Steve Gray refereeing Jack Catterall's victory in June
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Joshua’s clash with Russian Alexander Povetkin, which features Matty Askin’s British title defence against Lawrence Okolie on the undercard, will be witnessed by more than 80,000 spectators.

A former boxer himself, Gray has consistently impressed with his authority and firmness in the ring.

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This will be the fifth time Gray, who runs a landscape gardening business based in Wesham, has overseen a Joshua fight.

In 2016, Gray took charge of Joshua’s knockout win against Eric Molina in Manchester.

He has also overseen the wins against Matt Legg, Matt Skelton and Konstantin Airich.

The last high-profile fight Gray refereed was Tyson Fury’s points win against Francesco Pianeta in Belfast last month.

"[Povetkin's promoters] World of Boxing are happy with a British ref," promoter Eddie Hearn told Sky Sports.

"British refs are the best in the world."

Related topics:Anthony JoshuaWembleyEddie Hearn