Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua has collapsed yet again, according to promoter Frank Warren.
The all-British heavyweight clash has been discussed numerous times in recent years, with talks and deals collapsing on each occasion. Most recently, the pair were in autumn negotiations over a potential bout in December 2022, but those talks fell apart. Then, last week, 34-year-old Fury called on Joshua, 33, to help make the fight. However, the potential contest has fallen apart in record time.
That is according to Warren, who promotes WBC champion Fury and told Talksport on Thursday (1 June): “Let me clarify what has actually happened.
“Last week, a written proposal was sent to Matchroom for ‘AJ’ to fight Tyson in September. Eddie Hearn came back and spoke to my son George, who said it will take a couple of days to see where they are with it.
“A couple of days went by, and George met yesterday with AJ’s management company. They confirmed that AJ is fighting in Dubai in December, that is his preferred route. There is a space open in August, but they basically do not want to do the fight.
“That is what happened. When Tyson said there was a draft contract, what happened is we had prepared a draft contract the last time we had negotiations. So, there was nothing really to be concerned about in terms of negotiations; it was just if they wanted the fight or not.
“So, the situation is: Tyson is desperate to make the fight happen, as he was against [Oleksandr] Usyk, but AJ has chosen not to take the fight. That is where we are at.”
Warren was referring to the collapse of talks between Fury and Usyk in March, a month before the heavyweight champions were expected to clash and crown an undisputed title holder.
Warren also confirmed claims made by Hearn, who promotes Joshua, that AJ intends to fight in August as a warm-up for a potential bout with Deontay Wilder in December.
Joshua last fought in April, outpointing Jermaine Franklin in London to bounce back from two straight losses to Usyk. The Ukrainian beat Joshua via decision in 2021 to take the unified heavyweight titles from the Briton, and he retained them with another points win over AJ in a rematch last August.
Meanwhile, Fury last competed in December, fighting Derek Chisora for the third time and stopping him in Round 10. The victory saw Fury stay unbeaten, retain the WBC title, and move to 3-0 against his compatriot.
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