Tyson Fury vs. Anthony Joshua

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Tyson Fury vs. Anthony Joshua
DateTBA
VenueTBA
Title(s) on the lineWBC and The Ring heavyweight titles
Tale of the tape
Boxer Tyson Fury Anthony Joshua
Nickname Gypsy King AJ
Hometown Wythenshawe, Manchester, England Watford, Hertfordshire, England
Pre-fight record 31–0–1 (22 KOs) 24–2 (22 KOs)
Height 6 ft 9 in (206 cm) 6 ft 6 in (198 cm)
Style Orthodox[nb 1] Orthodox
Recognition WBC and The Ring heavyweight champion Former WBA (Super), IBF, WBO and IBO heavyweight champion

Tyson Fury vs. Anthony Joshua is a proposed heavyweight professional boxing match contested between WBC and The Ring champion, Tyson Fury and former WBA (Super), IBF, WBO and IBO champion, Anthony Joshua. The fight has been dubbed as "the biggest fight in British boxing history".[1]

Background[]

Undefeated champion Fury (left) holds WBC and The Ring titles. Meanwhile, Joshua (right) holds no belts.

After Fury defeated Deontay Wilder via seventh-round technical knockout (TKO) to capture the WBC and Ring heavyweight titles in February 2020, Wilder immediately activated a contractual rematch clause.[2] The trilogy fight was initially scheduled to take place on 18 July, but after Wilder suffered an injury and due to concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic, the bout was postponed until October. At Wilder's request, the bout was again pushed back to 19 December. After Wilder's team again requested to push the date back into 2021, Fury announced in October that he was moving on from a proposed third fight, stating, "they asked me if I would agree to push it to December. I agreed to Dec. 19. Then they tried to change the date again into next year. I've been training. I'm ready. When they tried moving off Dec. 19 and pushing to next year, enough was enough. I've moved on." Following Fury's comments, Wilder released a video on social media, accusing Fury of cheating during their February fight.[3] With team Fury insisting that the contractual rematch clause has expired and team Wilder insisting the opposite, both sides entered into a mediation process in an attempt to resolve the dispute.[4] However, according to Fury's promoter, Bob Arum, Fury has insisted that he will not fight Wilder again due to the accusations of cheating.[5]

Joshua defeated Andy Ruiz Jr. in a rematch in December 2019 to reclaim his unified heavyweight titles. Later that month, the WBO ordered Joshua to enter negotiations with their mandatory challenger Oleksandr Usyk. The following day, the IBF also ordered Joshua to face their mandatory challenger, Kubrat Pulev.[6] Due to the IBF initially ordering Joshua to face Pulev in early 2019, before the rematch with Ruiz,[7] it was determined that Pulev would be first in line with Usyk set to face the winner.[8] After an original date in June was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic,[9] Joshua defeated Pulev via ninth-round TKO in December 2020.[10] After the victory, Joshua was asked in the post-fight interview about the prospect of an undisputed fight with Fury, Joshua said, "I want a challenge. It's not about the opponent. It's about the legacy and the belt. Whoever's got the belt, I'd love to compete with him. If that is Tyson Fury, let it be Tyson Fury. It's no big deal." Fury released a video on social media in response to Joshua's comments, saying, "Well there you go everyone, Anthony Joshua just shit his self live on television. He got asked did he want the fight, and he went around the bushes and put his arse on the edge. I want the fight! I want the fight next! I'll knock him out inside three rounds! He's a big bum dosser. Can't wait to knock him out."[11]

A two-fight deal between the two champions has been agreed in principle since June 2020, with the first fight having a 50–50 purse split and the rematch a 60–40 split in favour of the winner.[12] In March 2021, it was reported that both teams had signed the contract, with the final details of a date and venue to be determined.[13]

On 17 May 2021, an announcement was made that the fight would take place on 14 August 2021 at a venue in Saudi Arabia.[14] However, 24 hours after the announcement was made, a judge in a US court ruled that Deontay Wilder was entitled to exercise his option for a third fight with Fury on a date up to 15 September. This put the proposed bout between Joshua and Fury in jeopardy, as Wilder indicated that he was not prepared to stand aside to allow the British boxers to proceed.[15][16] As a result of the difficulties in agreeing to the fight between Joshua and Fury, on 21 May the WBO gave the Joshua camp 48 hours to come to an agreement for the fight with Fury, or they would instead order a bout against their mandatory challenger, Oleksandr Usyk. On 22 May, the WBO issued an instruction that Joshua would have to fight Usyk, with an agreement for the bout to be in place by 31 May.[17] The following day, Fury announced that he had signed a contract for a third fight with Wilder, to be held in Las Vegas.[18]

Joshua and Usyk came to an agreement to stage their bout on 25 September 2021 at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, where Joshua suffered the second professional loss of his career when Usyk produced a dominant display to emerge the victor by unanimous decision, with Joshua's performance being labelled "a strange, almost hapless display".[19] Conversely, two weeks later on 9 October at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Fury was victorious, knocking Wilder out in the eleventh round of their trilogy bout to retain his undefeated record, in a fight described as "an all-time epic heavyweight championship fight" and "the obvious fight of the year so far".[20]

Fight card[]

Weight Class vs. Method Round Time Notes
Heavyweight United Kingdom Tyson Fury (c) vs. United Kingdom Anthony Joshua – (12) Note 1

^Note 1 For WBC and The Ring heavyweight titles

Notes[]

  1. ^ Listed by BoxRec as orthodox, but regularly switch hits as a southpaw.

References[]

  1. ^ "Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury agree to 'biggest fight in British boxing history'". Sky News. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
  2. ^ Rathborn, Jack (1 March 2020). "Deontay Wilder officially triggers rematch clause for third fight with Tyson Fury". The Independent. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
  3. ^ Brookhouse, Brent (12 October 2020). "Tyson Fury says he has 'moved on' from trilogy bout with Deontay Wilder after multiple delays". CBS Sports. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
  4. ^ Rafael, Dan (10 November 2020). "Wilder Taking Fury To Mediation in Attempt To Force a Third Fight". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
  5. ^ "Arum: Fury Told Me He Will Never Fight Wilder For a Third Time". BoxingScene.com. 15 January 2021. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
  6. ^ Rafael, Dan (12 December 2019). "Joshua has dual mandatory orders from IBF, WBO". ESPN. Retrieved 28 January 2021.
  7. ^ Donovan, Jake (27 January 2020). "Joshua vs. Pulev Talks Continue, As Deal - And Deadline - Draws Near". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 28 January 2021.
  8. ^ "Hearn: Joshua-Pulev, Usyk-Chisora, Whyte-Povetkin Are Coming". BoxingScene.com. 6 February 2020. Retrieved 28 January 2021.
  9. ^ "Anthony Joshua's world title defence against Kubrat Pulev postponed". BBC Sport. 3 April 2020. Retrieved 28 January 2021.
  10. ^ Dielhenn, James (13 December 2020). "Anthony Joshua knocks out Kubrat Pulev to edge closer to dream fight against Tyson Fury". Sky Sports. Retrieved 28 January 2020.
  11. ^ Idec, Keith (12 December 2020). "Tyson Fury: Joshua Just Sh-t Himself Live On TV; I'll Knock Him Out Inside 3 Rounds!". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 29 January 2021.
  12. ^ Bridge, Michael; Damerell, Richard; Dielhenn, James (11 June 2020). "Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury have agreed terms for a two-fight deal, says promoter Eddie Hearn". Sky Sports. Retrieved 29 January 2021.
  13. ^ Idec, Keith (15 March 2021). "Report: Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua Sides Have Signed Off On 2-Fight Deal; Date, Site TBD". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
  14. ^ "Anthony Joshua v Tyson Fury: British boxers to meet on 14 August in Saudi Arabia". BBC Sport. BBC. 17 May 2021. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  15. ^ "Anthony Joshua v Tyson Fury: Deontay Wilder arbitration casts doubt over Saudi Arabia bout". BBC Sport. BBC. 18 May 2021. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  16. ^ "Anthony Joshua v Tyson Fury: Deontay Wilder won't step aside from Tyson Fury fight - Bob Arum". BBC Sport. BBC. 20 May 2021. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  17. ^ "Anthony Joshua ordered to defend WBO heavyweight title against Aleksandr Usyk". BBC Sport. BBC. 22 May 2021. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  18. ^ "Fury v Wilder: Third fight signed for 24 July at Las Vegas venue". BBC Sport. BBC. 23 May 2021. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  19. ^ "Usyk beats Joshua by unanimous decision". BBC Sport. Retrieved 10 October 2021.
  20. ^ "Tyson Fury-Deontay Wilder III: A breathtaking heavyweight epic". The Ring. 9 October 2021. Retrieved 10 October 2021.
Retrieved from ""