The sordid saga of Tyson Fury vs. Anthony Joshua seems destined to drag on forever.
In November, Fury and Joshua were supposed to finally face off in a fight well over a decade in the making. The two British heavyweight boxing champions have circled each other for years, and in April, the bout was finally signed.
But things took a turn over the ensuing months, with the primary point of contention seeming to be the location of the fight and the involvement of TKO. Joshua’s team claims the fight they
signed on for was to take place at Wembley Stadium in London, while Fury’s team is pushing for the fight to take place at Madison Square Garden in New York.
The two sides appear to be deadlocked on the matter, with Hearn telling DAZN on Saturday after Katie Taylor’s retirement fight that TKO went behind his back to offer Joshua an undisclosed amount of money to agree to the change of venue.
“Yesterday [Friday], TKO went around the back again to try and offer Joshua money to do the fight in America,” Hearn said. “It’s a dirty, dirty game, mate, to be honest with you. It’s made it even harder for them now because Joshua ain’t about that. ‘You’ve got an hour and a half to make your decision.’
“‘Like, mate, what don’t you understand? I signed to fight in Britain. I want the fight in Britain.’
“You can’t buy everybody. Especially the ones who it means something to. And you know the crazy thing is, the more support AJ’s getting because of his desire to stage the fight in Britain, the more determined it’s making him to do it. …
“Listen, life is short,” Hearn added. “When it’s all said and done, and it’s all over, that’s what you’re going to remember. You ain’t gonna remember going to New York because the broadcaster thought he’d get more celebrities there. You’re going to remember the moment: 100,000 people gathered for the greatest sporting event our country’s ever seen.”
Fury, however, is not especially focused on that, even acknowledging that the fight was originally signed to take place in London. But Fury seems content to fight in New York City, even praising Dana White and TKO for getting “it all over the line.”
Hearn, meanwhile, has a different perspective.
“If they [TKO] had never gotten involved in the first place, the fight would already be announced and signed,” Hearn said. “They are the ones that are trying to bring this fight to America. They are the ones that are basically saying to British fight fans, ‘We don’t give a fuck. We don’t care about British fight fans. We want to do the fight in America, because that’s where we’re from.’
“Now, because of what they’ve said in the past, they’re so desperate. They’re panicking, and they’re doing silly things like that. And they’re going to get in trouble.
“We’ve already written to them,” Hearn continued. “But it’s like, ‘What are you doing? You’re on the New York Stock Exchange. What is this? Like just coming around the back and trying to bank someone a few quid?’ C’mon. It doesn’t got to be like that. But it’s pushing the fight farther away because of their behavior.”
And for his part, Fury appears to have given up on the long-awaited fight. “The Gypsy King” has been ripping Joshua and Hearn since the issue arose, and on Sunday called for Oleksandr Usyk to step in and replace Joshua for a fight at Madison Square Garden.
“So, it looks like AJ has shat his pants yet again,” Fury said on an Instagram Story. “After 11 years, he’s finally shat his pants yet again. So this would only lead me to a fight with Oleksandr Usyk.
“Oleksandr, you were his trainer and his sensei, and you know he’s a weak-minded piece of shit, and that he would never fight The Gypsy King. Which you’ve had the guts to do twice. Twice! And you know how difficult it is in there. Listen, you got the decisions last time; fair play to you. Good luck to you, but let’s do it again. Let’s run it back in November. The ball is now in your court, Oleksandr.
“Do you want to fight me this year, 2026, or are you calling it quits? Let me know, because I’m now looking for a new opponent.”
