Testing positive for four performance-enhancing drugs led to Miller’s immediate removal from their heavyweight title fight in June 2019 at Madison Square Garden in New York. Miller’s shortcuts cost himself, co-promoter Dmitriy Salita and the rest of his team an approximate $7 million package to challenge the then-undefeated, unified champion in the brash, Brooklyn-based contender’s hometown.

Eddie Hearn, Joshua’s career-long promoter, vowed he would never work with Miller again. Miller didn’t fight for three more years, in part because he failed yet another PED test that led to the cancelation of his fight with Jerry Forrest in July 2020 and the termination of his promotional deal with Bob Arum’s Top Rank Inc.

Miller, 37, hasn’t beaten a top heavyweight in any of his six fights since he finally returned to the ring in June 2022, yet he somehow finds himself in position to possibly battle Joshua at long last.

A lot of the buildup before Miller’s fight against unbeaten Cuban contender Lenier Pero on Saturday night has focused on his hairpiece hilariously coming off during the second round of his 10-round, majority-decision victory over Kingsley Ibeh in his last fight January 31 at Madison Square Garden. Their 12-round contest could emerge as a potentially lucrative test, however, to determine Joshua’s opponent for a July bout before he presumably moves on to finally fight British rival Tyson Fury sometime in November.

If Miller (27-1-2, 22 KOs) beats Pero (13-0, 8 KOs) in a main event DAZN will stream worldwide from Fontainebleau Las Vegas, he would be a perfect opponent for Joshua’s first fight since he was injured and two of his closest friends were killed in a horrific car accident December 29 near Lagos, Nigeria.

They obviously have history that would help make Joshua’s return to the ring more marketable in England. Miller would also be perceived publicly as a credible opponent for whatever’s left of Joshua, 36, yet not too dangerous to match with the chinny ex-champion.

If Hearn and his matchmakers are too careful in choosing Joshua’s next opponent, they’ll risk turning off British boxing fans who weren’t exactly thrilled with Fury fighting Arslanbek Makhmudov following two technical-knockout defeats in his previous five fights. Hearn, for whatever it’s worth, dismissed Miller as a potential opponent for Joshua’s next fight during a press conference Thursday in Las Vegas.

Miller was stopped in the 10th round by former IBF champ Daniel Dubois three fights ago, but he fought former champ Andy Ruiz to a majority draw in his following fight in August 2024. His performance against Ruiz, who replaced Miller and upset Joshua by seventh-round TKO, was one of the best of Miller’s checkered career, even though he settled for a draw.

Regardless, Miller is back in Hearn’s good graces, a necessity if he is to finally fight Joshua (29-4, 26 KOs). A victory over Pero, and what seemed unfathomable following Miller’s damaging PED ordeal seven years ago, might somehow happen after all.

It seems Oscar Duarte just wasn’t meant to fight for the IBF junior welterweight title.

The Mexican contender deserves that shot, but he essentially lost out on it for the second time in two months this week amid more abnormal circumstances. Duarte (30-2-1, 23 KOs), of course, needs to beat countryman Angel Fierro (23-4-2, 18 KOs) on the David Benavidez-Gilberto Ramirez undercard May 2 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas to remain in contention.

The third-ranked Duarte’s position as the IBF’s next available contender to battle No. 1 contender Lindolfo Delgado for the vacant championship was nonetheless nullified because both trained by Robert Garcia and therefore won’t fight each other.

The IBF consequently ordered fourth-ranked Teofimo Lopez to face Delgado for its unclaimed crown. The second spot in the IBF’s top 15 is unoccupied, which led the New Jersey-based sanctioning organization to demand Delgado-Lopez.

This denied Duarte another opportunity two months after Richardson Hitchins, who gave up the IBF 140-pound crown Monday, withdrew from his voluntary title defense versus Duarte on the day they were supposed fight on the Ryan Garcia-Mario Barrios undercard February 21 in Las Vegas. Duarte, 30, wasn’t paid his full purse, either, after Hitchins stunningly pulled out.

Veteran referee Eric Dali deserves credit for quickly recognizing something was wrong with Shadasia Green very early in the ninth round of what had been a very competitive super middleweight title fight against Lani Daniels a week ago in New York.

Dali didn’t allow Green to take too many unanswered, flush punches once Daniels started to unload on her defenseless opponent while a fast-fading Green was backed against the ropes, trying to cover up. He might’ve spared Green permanent damage by stepping between them to end their fight when he did.

The former Ring, IBF and WBO 168-pound champ was later hospitalized and determined to have a small brain bleed, from which the Paterson, New Jersey, native is expected to recover.

■ Now that Australia’s Daniels (12-4-2, 2 KOs) upset Green (16-2, 11 KOs), there’s no reason why Claressa Shields and Mikaela Mayer shouldn’t fight next. Shields (18-0, 3 KOs) wanted to fight Green, but a bout with Mayer has become the most meaningful fight in women’s boxing. If they can agree on a catchweight somewhere near 160 pounds, it would match the Nos. 2 and 3 fighters on The Ring’s pound-for-pound list, though Shields should be No. 1, and sells itself because they’re former Olympic teammates. Mayer (22-2, 5 KOs) has other options, most notably dropping down from junior middleweight to welterweight to battle Lauren Price (10-0, 2 KOs) in a full unification fight. A showdown with Shields would mean more for Mayer’s legacy, though, whereas Shields doesn’t have an appealing opponent at heavyweight or super middleweight and needs to face an opponent who is at least perceived as a threat to beat her.

■ No matter what you hear or read, the shrewd business acumen of those guiding Conor Benn’s career will prevent him from fighting Shakur Stevenson next. His contract extension with Zuffa Boxing is for five fights and they’re as aware as anyone else that Benn wouldn’t win against one of the best boxers, pound-for-pound, in the sport. Benn (25-1, 14 KOs) would also have to drop down to his lowest weight in more than four years for a fight with Stevenson (25-0, 11 KOs), who possesses leverage and options despite his potential foe's star status in the UK. Embracing what would likely result in a one-sided defeat in the first fight of his new deal, when Benn also has appealing alternatives, just wouldn’t make much sense.

■ Bill Caplan was one of boxing’s best publicists – a legendary, lovable figure behind the scenes among the fighters, promoters, reporters and others with whom he worked for more than 60 years. The quick-witted, caring Caplan, who died Thursday at the age of 90, had hilarious stories that could captivate us for hours. A uniquely colorful character in a sport full of them, Caplan always made fight weeks in Las Vegas and elsewhere more enjoyable. Rest easy, old friend.