The long-awaited fight between Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury finally looks set to take place later this year, provided a comeback fight for the former goes as planned.
Joshua has not boxed since his knockout win over Jake Paul on December 19. He was involved in a car accident in Lagos, Nigeria on December 29, which killed close friends Sina Ghami and Latif Ayodele.
The 36-year-old sustained minor injuries in the crash and, despite the obvious emotional impact on Joshua, he declared a month later that he would indeed return to the ring.
A bout with Fury is the biggest one left for Joshua at this point in his career, and it is one fight fans in Britain and around the world have long since been desperate to see.
Fury announced his retirement for the fifth time following defeat to Oleksandr Usyk in December, 2024. However, he returned with a unanimous decision win over Arslanbek Makhmudov earlier this month and quickly called out fellow former heavyweight champion Joshua, who was sat ringside at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
And, in a post on X (formerly Twitter), boxing executive Turki Alalsheikh appeared to confirm the fight had been set.
He wrote: “To my friends in Great Britain – it’s happening . It’s signed.”
The Saudi Arabian followed up that post with confirmation of Joshua’s comeback fight, which will take place against Kristian Prenga in Riyadh on July 25.
Ring Magazine’s senior insider Mike Coppinger then added in a post on X that Joshua-Fury is a done deal, with the fight set to take place in the fourth quarter of 2026.
There has, as yet, been no confirmation from either Joshua or Fury’s camp.
Better late than never for Joshua and Fury
Joshua’s unsurprising demolition of Paul took his professional record to 29-4.
But the two-time former unified heavyweight champion’s last true test ended in spectacular failure, as he was knocked out in the fifth round by compatriot Daniel Dubois in an IBF heavyweight title fight in September 2024.
Fury, meanwhile, has only ever lost to Usyk professionally. He was never in trouble against Makhmudov, with victory improving his record to 35–2–1.
The ‘Gypsy King’ would likely be seen as favourite for the fight. However, he will be 38 by the time he and Joshua do take to the ring, illustrating the point that this is a bout that would have been much more appealing several years ago.
Still, it will be an extremely lucrative affair, and one that is sure to capture the imagination of the boxing world.
‘The next step on that journey’
Joshua will need to beat Prenga (20-1) and avoid injury to ensure a fight with Fury does go ahead.
Speaking in a press release about his fight with the unheralded 35-year-old Albanian, Joshua said: “It’s no secret I’ve taken some time to consolidate and rebuild to be ready for stepping back in to the ring and today is the next step on that journey.
“I’m delighted to have agreed a multi-fight deal starting with July 25th in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. I’m looking forward to competing and picking up where I left off.”
