At last – after all the years of waiting – it appears that Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua is about to be officially announced.
Way back in 2020 the road to this moment began when Fury (34-2-1) announced on social media that he had agreed to fight AJ (29-4) in perhaps the biggest fight in British boxing history.
Many times in the interim these two former world heavyweight champions have been close to getting into the ring – at one stage agreeing a two-fight deal before Deontay Wilder won an arbitration ruling to scupper their planned first fight in August 2021.
Now neither man holds a world title, there are no politics of any kind stopping the British blockbuster we have all yearned to see. It is still a £100million fight (at least) and now it appears it will finally happen.
Joshua ringside for Fury vs Makhmudov
Tonight in London (Saturday April 11) Fury is making his long-awaited comeback from retirement when he faces giant Russian Arslanbek Makhmudov at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (10pm UK, live on Netflix). And we can confirm that Joshua is ringside.
Saudi power broker Turki Alalshikh has spoken many times of his desire to finally make Fury vs Joshua a reality, and we expect the official announcement to come in the ring, once Fury vs Makhmudov is completed.
Fury is a hot favourite to return with a victory after those back-to-back losses to the great Oleksandr Usyk in 2024. He is now 37 years old, but a stone lighter than he was for the rematch vs Usyk in December 2024.
When will Fury vs Joshua happen?
It is likely the bout will happen in September or October – we expect to get the official date tonight. In terms of venue, London is the hot favourite though Dublin has also been reported.
Fury would start a slight favourite against Joshua, and there would be no world heavyweight titles on the line. Right now they are all owned by Usyk, apart from the WBO title which is the property of British fairytale fighter Fabio Wardley.
So now, in a couple of hours, we should have the official confirmation. Fury is ready, Joshua is ringside and ready, Turki Alalshikh is ready. Finally, get the popcorn, fight fans.
