Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua cannot nail down fights as of June 20, 2023. Despite months of links to certain bouts, either is yet to confirm their next ring appearance.
So here’s an idea, why don’t Fury and Joshua face each other? – It might sound out of the ordinary and even be a little too hard for some people to deal with, but Fury and AJ should sit in a room and thrash this contract out.
How hard can it be in the grand scheme of things? Both haven’t had a big fight all year. Previously, Joshua’s Eddie Hearn stated Fury vs Joshua needs longer than a fortnight to get made.
Well, Eddie and Frank Warren, it’s been eight months since the Matchroom boss made his case.
Speaking to talkSPORT, Eddie said: “The fact is huge fights like this don’t get made in two weeks. That’s the reality. It takes time when two guys have huge commercial deals with different broadcasters.
“We worked away with George Warren [Frank Warren’s son]. It was going very, very well. But then Tyson Fury put us on the forty-eight-hour clock, where the contract was nowhere near ready.
“He told us the fight was off. Two days later, Queensberry said, ‘Oh no, it’s not; we’ve convinced him. Then he gives us another day. But you know these things take time.”
Whatever the excuse is now will be compounded by the fact Joshua vs Dillian Whyte II is also on the ropes. That makes it a lot of negotiations where opponents walk away from either Fury or Joshua.
Surely there can’t be smoke without fire?
Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua
British boxing fans, once again, have been made to wait for their two most significant names to swallow their pride.
Fury has surpassed the height of his powers after the Deontay Wilder trilogy. Meanwhile, Joshua’s two defeats against Oleksandr Usyk lowered his stock considerably.
The pair seem unable to nail down any other principal dance partner. Therefore begs the question, why don’t you just do everything you can to get this deal over the line?
It’s not rocket science for two people who want to fight each other to do so. Gervonta Davis and Ryan Garcia did it, followed by Errol Spence Jr. and Terence Crawford.
Are Fury and Joshua’s egos so big that they can’t bend enough to compromise? – That can be the only explanation, as outside of the UK, both men have no superpowers.
Fury could keep facing also-rans at arenas or stadiums on home soil and pocket the millions Frank Warren and BT Sport can muster. However, that’s not enhancing a legacy that promised so much after the Wilder trilogy.
On the other hand, Joshua has two shots to secure redemption after the Usyk losses. Together, Fury and AJ can potentially break the UK Pay Per View record.
Apart, they can barely make a ripple in worldwide terms. Gentlemen, let’s get it on.
The views expressed in this article are the opinions of experienced boxing writer Phil Jay. Twitter @PhilJWBN.
