After his victory over Arslanbek Makhmudov, Tyson Fury is demanding the long-awaited showdown against Anthony Joshua – otherwise the “Gypsy King” will hang up his gloves.
After his victory over Arslanbek Makhmudov, Tyson Fury, former two-time heavyweight world champion, made it unmistakably clear that he is determined to get into the ring against Anthony Joshua next – otherwise he is threatening to retire from boxing. Immediately after the fight against Makhmudov, Fury even asked Joshua to come into the ring for a face-off to set up a possible all-British mega-fight. But Joshua didn’t go for it and instead stayed in his ringside seat.
“If it’s not against Anthony Joshua next, then I’m not interested in boxing,” Fury declared at the post-fight press conference. “I’m going to eat a thousand Easter eggs, go up on 35 Stone – I’m out, I’m not interested anymore. It’s either him or I’m out again. I’m not interested at all! I’m not interested in up-and-coming fighters. I’m not interested in anyone trying to prove anything against me. I don’t care about that. I don’t care about rankings, I don’t care about belts. I’m only interested in AJ. This fight is the decisive fight for British boxing. Either it happens or it doesn’t.”
Fury and Joshua had already reached an agreement in 2021, when both held all four major heavyweight world titles together. However, due to a contractual obligation to grant Deontay Wilder a third fight, the planned clash with Joshua, which was originally scheduled to take place in Saudi Arabia, never materialized.