It's the fight which lovers of the sweet science have been dreaming about for years.
Boxing promoters are experts in elevating the magnitude of duels, however, a meeting between Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua needs no extra sell. The looming heavyweight dust-up has a fresh narrative with Joshua now an outsider aiming to rebound from three defeats in his last five. The pair are now primed to lock horns on December 3, with Cardiff's Millennium Stadium set to host a fight for the ages.
Fans are set for some good old fashioned trash talk, however, The Gypsy King has already rained down some verbal haymakers in recent years at his arch-nemesis. The duo have been poised to face off a number occasions but the big one is almost upon us. Joshua is eyeing a stunning redemption arc after his consecutive defeats to mercurial Oleksandyr Usyk and knows he has the chance to down the undefeated champion.
But Fury will not be defeated on the microphone and has been consistent in firing shots at AJ on multiple occasions over the years.
Dumb fighter (April 2016)
It all started with an iconic interview, Fury, fresh off his win over Wladimir Klitschko he had a clear message for Joshua. Speaking to IFLTV, he said: "It's not up to Joshua (who he fights). He gets told what to do by his promoter. He's not the brains of Britain. He's a dumb fighter, going in the ring, punching some other bums out. He's a piece of meat, being used, like me."
'Weight lifter' (April 2017)
Perhaps, and this is debatable, his most pointed barb as Fury at his lowest ebb let rip at the then reigning heavyweight kingpin. He said: "This is a message to the weight lifter, big Anthony Joshua, the big tough man. He told me to get fit, the "fat f***," it's a new one as he usually doesn't swear as he's not himself. So he's being himself now, which is good. To be honest with you me old mate, I don't need to get fit for somebody like you at all, I'll come to you and punch your face right in, even at 25 stone.
"I really don't need to get fit so I really don't need to get fit for you, put it that way. I've seen what you're all about. You fought a midget [Carlos Takam] the other day in a hard fight. The referee had to stop it in case you got caught or beat. Bum City like I always said: no gas, no stamina, too many weights. You want to practice on a bit more speed and less power. Bum."
'Paper champ' (August 2020)
And Fury is never short of creative jibes, he said: "I might be fat, but you're a paper champ and paper-chinned, weightlifting, rudeboy, wannabe badman."
'Diva' (June 2022)
Speaking to IFLTV, he said: "Tried to make that fight six times at least and unsuccessful every time because you're messing with a diva. Prima donna, little sucker b****, who don't want to fight me. He couldn't beat me if he had a baseball bat while I was sleeping."
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