The heavyweight division looks set to be united as Anthony Joshua has claimed he will be fighting fellow Brit Tyson Fury in a unification bout in June of this year.
Any lingering hopes of a fight between Joshua and Wilder appeared to disappear when the American was stripped of his WBC world title by Fury but Hearn said the fight could still happen in 2022.
It looks set to be one of the biggest fights in British boxing history and something Joshua has alluded to as being “for the fans.”
LOCATION: Muralla cor Recoletos Sts. Intramuros, Manila 1002 P.O. PHONE: (632) 8527-8121 (All departments) HOURS: Monday through Saturdays 8am – 5pm. Wilder's contractual claim to a third fight with Fury, next, is still in legal arbitration in New York. If he is threatened with being kept out of work even longer, the unpredictable Fury could.
The contest has been brewing for a while, with the pair having some choice words for their rival on social media over the past few weeks and months.
Both enjoyed a successful 2020, which sets everything up nicely for a superfight this year.
AJ & Fury's 2020
Fury maintained his undefeated record when he beat Deontay Wilder via TKO in Las Vegas to capture the WBC and The Ring heavyweight titles, while Joshua defeated Bulgarian Kubrat Pulev in December.
Joshua, who currently holds the WBA, IBF and WBO belts, sounds certain that the fight will take place.
This will be music to the ears of the Gypsy King, who feared that the fight wouldn’t go ahead due to the pandemic and AJ’s team.
“I’m not optimistic. They’ve had a full year to make this fight happen, since the last Wilder fight. Even before the Wilder fight they were talking potentially about a fight between me and Joshua,” Fury recently told ESPN.
“They’ve had a full year to make something happen and it hasn’t happened as of yet. It is what it is, nothing’s happened. We’re no further forward today than we were a year ago.
“Because of the way Covid is at the moment, I don’t think it’s got much to do with the fighters. It’s to do with the venue, date, a place, site fees. It’s to do with everything but the fighters themselves.”
Joshua Aiming for June
Despite Fury’s doubt for the fight taking place, Joshua has responded, hoping that the bout can be held in the summer.
“June should be the date. Trust me. For the fans, for the people that have been calling it on for many months,” said the Watford-born boxer in an interview with JD Sports.
Wilder Vs Fury 3 Date
“Shoutout to Fury and his team as well, hungry go-getters, that’s what we are. UK stand up. I can’t wait. Undisputed.”
If the fight takes place, it will be the first all-British heavyweight title match since 2015, when Joshua defeated Dillian Whyte in London to retain the WBC International and Commonwealth heavyweight titles.