The "Battle of Britain" has now been officially announced, but the issue of who is promoting it could be a real problem
The news is everywhere today: the superfight that's eluded boxing fans for years, between Tyson Fury and his great British rival, Anthony Joshua, is finally on.
For weeks, the sticking point was the location. Would it be in the UK, as stipulated in Anthony Joshua's contract? Or in the US, as favoured by Netflix, who'll be broadcasting the show, and the US promoter, Dana White and his Saudi backers, who are funding it?
Staging the fight in the UK was a matter of principle according to AJ's promoter, Eddie Hearn. He said he always abides by contracts, and it is only right that British fans should get to see the fight in their own country.
Cynical observers felt that Eddie Hearn was less motivated by patriotic fervour over the issue, and more by a desire not to allow his arch-rival, the American, Dana White to take over the promotion of the fight. Dana has done his level best since gatecrashing boxing, to weaken Hearn's position, brazenly poaching some of the biggest names in the Matchroom supremo's stable, and bad-mouthing him at every opportunity.
Buried in the fight's announcement today by Turki Al-Sheikh, the Saudi sports mogul who's made this fight possible, is the news that the promoter will be Dana White. Hearn must have thought that staging the fight in the UK would place it beyond Dana's grasp. What could be worse for him than Dana taking control of it in his own backyard?
Eddie has said a press conference for the fight, planned for next week, may not now go ahead.
Eddie Hearn is in a difficult position. He risks serious reputational damage if he continues to obstruct this fight, after getting his way over what he said was the biggest stumbling block - the location. But if he steps back and watches Dana White take over the show, he will find it hard to repeat his frequent claim that is the best promoter in the world.
I think it's too late now for Hearn to stop the fight from happening. Since he is not the one paying for it, his options are limited. This may come down to whose names appear in the fight's publicity and in which order. Hearn will likely seek some kind of concession from Turki behind the scenes, and may be given a small one.
But Joshua has now started his fight preparations and has enrolled in the drug-testing programme. The countdown has begun - he finally has his chance to prove that he is better than Fury. A win over the Gypsy King would be sweeter than any of his world title victories.
AJ also wants to dedicate the victory to the memory of the dear friends he lost last year in the car crash in Nigeria. He will not want to miss out on that opportunity for spiritual healing, not to mention the massive pay day that's waiting.
