- Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury agreed to have two fights in 2021, yet it was in principle.
- Sources are claiming that some aspects of the future deal have been arranged, still not all of them.
- There are certain obstacles in this matter because both fighters have mandatory challengers to take care of first.
Joshua’s Promoter Reveals the News
Eddie Hearns, the person who promotes Anthony Joshua, stated yesterday that his client and Tyson Fury agreed to clash in 2021 – on two occasions.
The deal is to have the first fight during the summer and several months later, the second one, regardless of the result. Hearn added that both boxers agreed to this in principle.
“We’re in a good place. It’s fair to say that, in principle, both guys have agreed to that fight. Two fights.”
We need to add, that there still hasn’t been any official contract signed by either of the parties, but after these negotiations, that moment is definitely much closer than before. The 41-year old promoter also said that the most important part of the talks, the one which considers the finances, ended very well and that they worked out a deal that secures each fighter 50% of the overall revenue.
Mandatory Challengers Standing in the Way
Joshua is the IBF, WBA, and the WBO champion, and at the moment, he has a scheduled fight with Kubrat Pulev, who is the mandatory IBF challenger. The Bulgarian Kobra and AJ were supposed to clash on June 20th, but their meeting was postponed due to a COVID-19 pandemics. The new date is still not revealed.
On the other hand, Fury, the WBC champ, recently dethroned Deontay Wilder, has Dillian Whyte as the mandatory challenger. The other Brit is waiting for almost a year now for his chance to win the heavyweight title belt. He earned this right by beating Oscar Rivas when he claimed the WBC interim belt, but back then, Wilder, who was the champion fought Fury, and after that prepared for the rematch.
Once mentioning the Bronze Bomber, he hopes to have the third fight with Fury, and according to the Gyspy King, that would be quite possible.
Fury would tweet right after the news about his agreement with Joshua that he has some unfinished business to do, meaning about another fight with Wilder.
“Two-fight deal, Fury vs. Joshua next year. One problem? I’ve got to smash Wilder. Then we go into the Joshua fight. It’s on, next year, but there is a hurdle in the road called Wilder,” he wrote.
All these things are making it hard to predict when would Fury vs. Joshua fight take place, and to comment on any future activities regarding this matchup.
The venue of the possible spectacles is not negotiated now, but according to signals and statements from both champions, at least one of them should take place in Britain. Saudi Arabia and the United States have the highest chances of hosting the second match, but that is still just speculation, without any hard evidence.
