Negotiations for the superfight between Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury are at a “very advanced” stage, according to Matchroom chief Eddie Hearn.
Fury called out Joshua at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium after his routine comeback win Arslanbek Makhmudov and Turki Alalshikh attempted to make the fight announcement there and then.
Sat in the front row, Joshua was not having it though and proceeded to call Fury a “clout chaser” as he waited for the final details of the fight to be ironed out.
But the battle between two of Britain’s greatest heavyweights does appear to be close to getting the green light, with Joshua’s long-time promoter Hearn giving an encouraging update.
Hearn spoke to Colm McGuigan of IFL TV and revealed that talks are progressing well for a two-fight deal between the two former world champions.
Fury and Joshua looks set to happen later this year. Image: Getty
Having been involved in a car crash which claimed the lives of his two close friends back in December, Joshua will have a warm-up fight in July before getting it on with Fury on DAZN and Netflix.
Hearn did rule out that warm-up fight being against Jarrell Miller, someone he has a backstory with.
“AJ’s going to fight in July,” Hearn admitted.
“It’s going to be someone where I don’t think you guys are going to look at it and go ‘wow’. I think so [it’s going to be criticised]. Makhmudov was criticised and I thought Makhmudov was a very fair comeback opponent.
“He didn’t really cause any trouble on the night but he’s a decent fighter.
“We’re looking at a few guys, I’m not going to mention their names but they’re all dangerous. If AJ’s not physically or mentally ready, it will be a very dangerous fight but it’s also a comeback fight after some quite severe injuries and a very traumatic time in his life.
“If we take a fight like this, the good news is we have signed to fight Tyson Fury. All you’ve got to do is bite your fingernails in July for 36 minutes or less and you’ve got the fight of all time.”
Hearn also added that “the fight will land wherever His Excellency wants the fight to land” in regards to the location.
Featured Image Credit: Getty
Topics:Â Eddie Hearn, Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury