Frank Warren has said Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua is ‘90 per cent’ done as anticipation grows over the potential all-British super-fight.
Joshua’s decision defeat by Oleksandr Usyk in August – his second in 11 months – saw the Briton fail to regain the WBA, WBO, IBF and IBO heavyweight belts that he had lost to the Ukrainian in their first clash. It also seemed to end hopes of “AJ” ever sharing a ring with Fury, until the WBC champion offered his compatriot a shot at the title.
Talks between Fury and Joshua’s teams have advanced quickly over the last two weeks, with a 60-40 purse split in favour of Fury having been agreed.
“The contracts are on their way,” Fury’s UK promoter Warren told Talksport on Wednesday (14 September). “But I’m not going into great detail about this, because we saw what happened last time around with people making statements and so forth, and it all fell apart.
“This fight won’t be on until it’s signed, but everybody wants it to happen. The basis of the deal, 90 per cent of what counts, is okay; 10 per cent we’ve got to sort out.”
A deal was signed in 2021 that set up two fights between Joshua and Fury, but it fell through when Deontay Wilder took legal action and secured a trilogy bout with the “Gypsy King”. This time, however, Warren sees no reason why Fury vs Joshua cannot come to fruition.
“There aren’t any obstacles in the way, so hopefully very quickly we can get it over the line,” he said, “but until it’s signed, it’s not on.
“When you’re a promoter, you’re an optimist. That’s what you do. You’re in the business of trying to make events happen, so we’re all excited it. I’m excited about it as a fight, because I always felt that Tyson has the beating of AJ, and now we’re gonna find out if we get this over the line.”
Fury is unbeaten, while 32-year-old Joshua’s defeats by Usyk followed a 2019 loss to Andy Ruiz Jr, who stopped AJ in June of that year before losing to the Briton on points that December.
Fury, 34, last fought in April, knocking out Dillian Whyte at Wembley Stadium in London to retain the WBC heavyweight title, before claiming to be retired until last month.
