Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua: Everything you need to know about the proposed heavyweight fight | Debate News

Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua both won at the weekend to keep themselves on course for a blockbuster heavyweight showdown – here’s everything you need to know about the proposed fight.

Fury and Joshua have shared seasons, headlines and negotiating tables without ever sharing a ring. The fight was previously announced in August 2021 in Saudi Arabia and the terms were agreed again in December 2022 before both folded without a punch being thrown.

The return to the ring this weekend for both men is expected to be the last boxing match before the real thing happens this time.

What happened to Fury and AJ’s warm-up fights?

Fury scored a seventh-round TKO of Mariusz Wach at the Max Muay Thai Stadium in Thailand on Friday, with Wach pointing to his corner to wave the fight away before the officials called it off before the eighth.

The match was not televised and fought in front of around 1,500 spectators in Pattaya and was 37-year-old Fury’s second since ending his recent retirement, following his points victory over Arslanbek Makhmudov at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in April.

Joshua’s night in Jeda was very wonderful. He was knocked down in 20 seconds by Kristian Prenga, hit the canvas twice in the first round, then knocked out the Albanian with right hands in the second.

It was AJ’s first outing since he was a passenger in the December car accident that killed his friends Sina Ghami and Latif Ayodele and his first fight since stopping Jake Paul last December.

When will these two fight?

The calendar flipped to November and a warm-up double header was scheduled to coincide with that timeline.

Contracts have been signed and the pair are set to meet, although an exact date has yet to be announced – although Fury said after beating Wach that he hoped the fight would be signed “next week”.

Where will the fight be?

No location has been announced.

Turki Alalshikh, who is the organizer of this fight, said that he wants this fight to be suitable for a world audience and he will talk to the authorities in London when it starts after the usual time.

Sky Sports he revealed, however, that Brent Council had not been approached about extending the usual 11pm curfew at Wembley Stadium.

Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn revealed that the USA is now Alalshikh’s preferred destination, but highlighted that the contracts currently signed state that the fight must be in the UK.

“That is not in line with the contract we signed,” he said. “Until we are happy and waiting for all the points of that contract to be followed, I think this fight should be in the UK.

“If they want to change the contract, we will have to renegotiate the contract. This is not a problem, but it is a discussion that we must have.”

Wembley is run by Barry Hearn, Eddie’s father, and Cardiff’s Principality Stadium has been rumoured, but Croke Park appears unlikely to be an option despite earlier suggestions of talks about moving the fight to Dublin.

“There are two or three different places that could be but there are still a few disputes and the one man who will make decisions is Turki Alalshikh, and Netflix,” said Spencer Brown, Fury’s manager.

“They will make decisions. They both want to fight, so there will be cuts and changes.”

What does AJ say?

“I’m going to rip his heart out,” Joshua said after beating Prenga. “All jokes aside, I respect everything he has done and achieved but we are here now.

“I hope the fans will have a good time.”

He also dedicated Saturday’s win to his late friends, adding: “It was more than a punch, it was a spirit.”

Joshua reiterated that the contract says the fight must be in the UK.

What did Fury say?

Fury got his shot after beating Wach and questioned whether Joshua had the “guts” to face him, pointing out his opponent refused to enter the ring after Makhmudov’s fight in front of 70,000 in Tottenham.

“The biggest test of all is how big his ***** is,” said Fury.

“I think he’s a big ********. In Tottenham in front of 70,000 people, he never had the courage to enter the ring and face me.

“Let’s see what he will do, I can’t believe it.”

Fury then went from Vegas, New York, Ireland, London, Belfast and even Pattaya as possible destinations.

That followed his Sky Sports News interview in fight week, where he said “I don’t care if I ever see him again in my life” and vowed not to go to Saudi Arabia to see him face to face.

Despite expressing his concerns, Fury said he hopes the next big fight will be signed next week and his managers have confirmed they are looking to finish it within the next two weeks.

“If war is declared, which we expect to do in the next few weeks,” said Brown. “There are still a few contractual things we have to go through, namely where it will be, when it will be, how it will be, but I am assured that we will have it sorted out in the next few weeks.”

Who is the favorite according to the experts?

Former middleweight world title contender Matthew Macklin he believes ‘king of the gypsies’ is the clear favourite.

“I think Tyson Fury is the favorite,” Macklin said. “I think he has better style and assets at that age. I think AJ likes to run a lot but as you get older those athletic qualities diminish.

“I think his resistance to boxing is probably over now. Dubois, it was a bad beating, and since then he’s had that fight with Jake Paul.

“I don’t think his punch resistance is going to be anywhere near what it was before, and his thinking isn’t going to be what it was, so it’s a double whammy.

“The rage, his mindset is not going to be what it was so it’s not like all of AJ is diminishing. He’s not the fighter he was. None of them were, but I think we all know that and accept that.

“It’s still a level playing field because they’re both past their prime, so it’s still going to be an impressive fight.”

According to the Sky Sports Boxing expert, he was the WBO Cruiserweight Champion Johnny Nelsonhe said: “There is a word ‘mercurial’ that describes Anthony Joshua.

“He has a lot of talent but it’s a matter of what type of him comes out on the night of the game.

“The talented fighter we know was not there [on Saturday]. Guts, heart, he was there, because after 20 seconds he went down and had to get up again. He was still making rookie mistakes. I think, you shouldn’t make those mistakes at this stage of your career.

“Listen, I’m a fan of AJ, but I’m going to have to lean on Tyson Fury coming in, his boxing ability – because of Anthony Joshua’s weakness, getting caught by that little sneaky inside, getting caught again.

“These are Tyson Fury’s natural shots. When it comes to heart, determination, desire and will, I put that in Anthony Joshua’s corner.

“But with last night’s game and Friday night, I’m going to have to lean on Tyson Fury, from what I’ve seen.”

What’s next?

The date and location announcement is a key piece of outstanding information but, given the November window, that confirmation is expected within weeks.

For reference, tickets for the Joshua vs. Dubois fight went on sale less than three months before that event.

The plan when the two arrived at the weekend was a joint press conference to officially announce the fight, although Fury’s refusal to share with Joshua makes the status of that uncertain and there is an article to be answered.

Fury is expected to be signed within days before fans look forward to what will be one of British boxing’s most anticipated events.