By: Sean Crose
WBC and lineal heavyweight world champion Tyson Fury not only offered to fight Anthony Joshua on Monday, but now offered Joshua a 60/40 financial split of what would be a major heavyweight event. “I’m being bombarded,” Fury says in a video posted to social media Tuesday, “with messages about how much I’m going to pay AJ… I’ve offered him 60/40. Forty percent of this amazing fight because I want this fight to happen. You no longer have excuses not to take it. You can’t say I made you a low bet and offered you 20 percent, 30 percent. I’ve offered people 40 percent. Take it or leave it. Let us know. Boom.”
Fury wanted to face WBA, IBF and WBO heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk, who recently defeated Joshua for the second time, before the end of the year. However, Fury claimed that Usyk was not interested in fighting so soon, so the focus was on Joshua. While Joshua was unable to regain the title belts he had previously lost to Usyk in his rematch, the man remains one of the most popular fighters in the world, especially in England, the place he and Fury both call home. . Fury referred to a match with Joshua as “The Battle of Britain” for a reason.
The truth, however, is that a fight between these two towering Englishmen is unlikely to take place before the end of 2022. After all, Joshua has just come through a grueling second match with Usyk, a match he lost. Also, Joshua initially had a hard time accepting the outcome of the Usyk rematch. Here, without a doubt, is a professional athlete from whom many would expect to take a break to regain the physical and emotional strength necessary to participate in a high-level boxing match. Joshua, however, is nothing if not competitive.
Also, if he beats Fury, Londoner Joshua would not only be a champion again, but also hold the lineal heavyweight championship, making him the man who beat the man who beat the man in a line that goes back to late 1800s. No small feat. As for Fury, the colorful champion demolished longtime contender Dillian Whyte last spring and then, after declaring his retirement, he declared that he wanted to fight before the end of the year. The main question now is whether or not his opponent will be Joshua.
