In great news for boxing fans, negotiations have reportedly started between heavyweight champions Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury for a mega-fight in the Middle East somewhere.
Joshua vs. Fury could end up being the biggest heavyweight fight in the history of the sport. There’s massive interest from all over the world to see these two giants clash, and it’s going to make massive money.
Wilder’s manager Shelly Finkel told ESPN that he expects his fighter to still be facing Fury next. We’ll see if he has a change of mind in the coming months.
With boxing having taken a HUGE hit due to the global pandemic, it would be fantastic for the sport if Joshua-Fury is one of the first fights that take place after the lockdown ends.
ESPN is reporting that MTK is doing the negotiations for WBC champion Fury (30-0-1, 21 KOs), and they’re working with Fury’s co-promoters Top Rank and Frank Warren to try and get the fight done with IBF/WBA/WBO champion Joshua (23-1, 21 KOs).
Wilder will need step aside fee
Fury’s promoters are waiting to see what kind of money offers they’ll get from Saudi Arabia. The 6’9″ Fury will need to receive a big enough offer to pay former WBC champion Deontay Wilder (42-1-1, 41 KOs) a step aside fee.
Fury is contractually obligated to give Wilder an immediate rematch. However, Wilder had bicep surgery, and it’s believed that he’ll be willing to step aside to let Fury and Joshua square off to give the boxing world what they want to see.
“Let’s see what type of offers we get from the Middle East,” Fury’s promoter Bob Arum of Top Rank said to ESPN. “Because there is a real frenzy with Saudi Arabia, Qatar, with the Emirates, to do events, to open up these countries in the winter and into next year. It would be foolish for us to not consider those types of offers.”
Wilder wants the immediate rematch with Fury, but if they make it worthwhile for him to step aside, then he could oblige.
It’s a win-win for Wilder if he steps aside because he’ll have more time to come back from his surgery. Also, having more time will allow Wilder to mentally recover from his devastating seventh-round knockout loss to Fury on February 22 in Las Vegas.
Fury willing to fight Joshua anywhere
“I’ll fight in Timbuktu if the money’s right. I have a bag, and I will travel,” said Fury to ESPN when asked if he’d be willing to travel to a foreign country to face Joshua.
A lot of British boxing fans won’t be pleased if they can’t watch Joshua vs. Fury in the UK, as it’ll be expensive and time-consuming for them to make the long trip to Saudi Arabia to see the fight. But from Joshua, Fury, and the promoter’s perspective, they want to stage the fight where it has a chance to make the most amount of money.
