Hearn Confirms Tyson Fury-Anthony Joshua Contracts Signed

On Monday Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn confirmed the long awaited news that Unified WBA, IBF and WBO Heavyweight Champ Anthony Joshua and WBC titleholder, Tyson Fury have agreed in writing to meet each other.

However, as for the “when” that will take place? It’s another matter.

First, Hearn told ESPN’s boxing insider/analyst Mark Kriegel Monday morning that all parties, including promoters have now agreed to the two-fight deal, that allows the loser to get a rematch,

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“We’d like to get a site deal confirmed in the next month,” said Hearn. “The hard part is always getting everybody to put pen to paper. But this was a major effort from all parties to get this over the line. You had rival promoters, rival networks and rival fighters.”

Hearn is referring to Fury’s co-promoter’s, Bob Arum and Top Rank Boxing in the U.S. and Frank Warren’s Queensbury Promotions in the U.K., finalizing their end and demands with Matchroom.

He continued to ESPN,

I actually feel we’ve done the hard part. Speaking for myself, Anthony and his team at 258 management [258 MGT], I know how hard we’ve worked these last couple of months and I just feel that this fight is so big it’s not a difficult sell.

We’ve already had approaches from eight or nine sites. The offers have come from multiple countries in the Middle East, from Asia, Eastern Europe and America.” 

Still, those “offers” are contingent on being able to have fans and some “live gate revenue” for the massive amount of guaranteed money that has been put in front of Joshua and the former Undisputed Champ, Fury.

And, that’s why Hearn is referring to having the fight in the Middle East or even in the U.S., even though it would be Britain’s biggest/most watched world title fight ever.

Still, the lingering question is: will former WBC champ Deontay Wilder stand in the way of Fury-Joshua, while still trying to get a third bout with Fury? Fury’s 7th round TKO in their second bout was 13 months ago.

And the Covid-19 pandemic scuttled the plans for a Fury-Wilder third bout this past Fall in the United States. And, it is still unclear if  the two will have to fight for a third time per their agreement for fight #2, which allowed the loser a rematch.

Wilder remains silent, for now, while mediation reportedly continues and it may be that the Alabama native will take a sizeable “step aside” payday to let the two Fury-Joshua fights happen. Then again, he was reportedly guaranteed in excess of $30 million for the Fury third fight and that’s why the “when” for Fury-Joshua is being held up.

BoxingScene.com Sr. Writer/insider, Keith Idec, shared more about the Fury-Wilder-Joshua situation on our most recent “Big Fight Weekend Podcast”,

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Meanwhile, Joshua was last in the ring in December, when he kayoed IBF #1 contender Kubrat Pulev in London and is awaiting the mega-pay days from the potential Fury bouts.

Now, we wait for things to play out on a potential timeline of Wilder stepping out of the way, or not, and the Fury-Joshua first fight potentially happening this Summer.