After his victorious 2026 return to the ring former WBC heavyweight champ Tyson Fury did all he could post-fight to get countryman and also, former heavyweight champ Anthony Joshua to commit to fighting him. It seems the bout is close to happening.
Soon after he had easily won his first fight in over a year in a 12 round decision Saturday night in London over Arslanbek Makhmudov, Tyson Fury turned his attention to what is likely next.
“The Gypsy King” shifted immediately from celebrating easy victory to business, loudly calling out former two time unified champion and fellow countryman Anthony Joshua, who was seated ringside. This, as it appears that the two will finally clash for a long-awaited bout from British heavyweight supremacy later this year.
The potential showdown, more than a decade in the making, would rank among the biggest all-British fights in boxing history.
Adding fuel to the moment, Turki Alalshikh, the influential Saudi backer behind many of boxing’s marquee events over the past three and a half years—stepped into the ring after Fury’s win and made his promotional intentions clear.
Standing alongside Joshua’s promoter, Eddie Hearn of Matchroom Boxing and Fury’s promoter, Frank Warren of Queensberry Promotions, Alalshikh pointed directly at Joshua's seat and declared to Fury, “He is next.”
The dramatic exchange kicked off a chaotic and electrifying post-fight scene that proved far more compelling than Fury’s dominant unanimous decision over Makhmudov. While previous attempts to finalize a Fury-Joshua bout have repeatedly fallen apart over the years, this moment appears to be different and the right time. Fury appeared fully committed, and with major promoters and financial backing aligned, the highly sought match-up could happen later this Summer
Fury, 35-2-1, 24 KOs, said in the ring on Netflix and the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium public address system,
“Like I said, let me get Arslanbek Makhmudov out of the way but next I want to give you the fight you’ve all been waiting for,” Fury told the crowd. “I want you, AJ, Anthony Joshua! Let’s give the fight fans what they want — the Battle of Britain! And here’s my challenge — I challenge you, Anthony Joshua, to fight me, ‘The Gypsy King,’ next! Do you accept my challenge?
“Let him say yes or no now!”
Fury called for Joshua, to come up to the ring and to join him in the ring, but Joshaua declined, as they stared each other down.
“Come on ya big sh*t house! Are you gonna fight or not?!” Fury screamed.
Joshua, who was handed a microphone outside the ring, and gave a composed reply,
“Tyson, you’re a clout chaser. Tyson, I’ve never had no problem getting in the ring with you,” Joshua told him. “I punched you up when we were kids. And after watching you tonight I’ll punch you up again. With all due respect, tonight is your night and you know I’ll sit across the ring from you in due time.
“You ain’t gonna tell me what to do. I’ve been chasing you for the last 10 years. When you’re ready you come and see me and tell me your terms and conditions and I’ll have you in the ring when I’m ready. I’m the boss. You work for me. I’m the landlord. Remember that.”
Hear insider Dan Rafael with me going over the potential for Fury-Joshua later this year off our "Fight Freaks Unite Recap" Podcast by clicking play below,
Joshua, 29-4, 26 KOs, is the former two time unified champ and both he and Fury have experienced losing twice to current top heavyweight Oleksandr Usyk by decision. Joshua was also violently knocked out by fellow Brit Daniel Dubois in September 2024. However, he did cash in on a mega-payday by dropping and stopping social media star turned fighter Jake Paul in a Miami Netflix main event last November.
As for Fury, he's most known for his two knockouts of American Deontay Wilder in 2020 and their epic rematch with both fighters repeatedly down in October 2021. However, he's been largely inactive around the two Usyk 2024 fights over the past three plus years.
Fury made clear that he only wants the huge Joshua massive fight or he might "retire" again, just as he's allegedly done four other times.
“Here’s the thing, if it ain’t Anthony Joshua next, I’m not interested in boxing,” Fury said later at his post-fight news conference. “I’ll eat a thousand Easter eggs, get up to 35 stone — I’m out. I’m not interested. It’s either him or I’m gone again. I don’t care about rankings. I don’t care about belts.
“I only care now about AJ, that fight. That’s the defining fight for British boxing. It’s either going to happen or it’s not.”
For his part, Joshua told Netflix in a one on one interview soon after the ring/PA theatrics with Fury,
“There’s a negotiation that you go through. I’ve sat at this table with him many times,” Joshua said of making the fight. “In my heart I’ll fight Tyson Fury tomorrow, especially after watching that. No problem with me fighting. This is what I do. I’m not going to sit here and say, ‘Yeah, I’ll fight him.’ I’m not here to get clout. I’m here to fight. Contracts will be sent over. We’ll go through the nitty-gritty and you’ll probably see us in the ring next, more than likely. But I’m not here to start getting in the ring and shouting in someone’s face.
“You look at my track record. I’ve never done that. I’m not here for clout. I watched the fight. I saw what I saw and I know what I’ve got to do when I get in him in the ring. He’s the one that retired. I’ve been in the game.
I’ve never retired. I’ve been standing strong for the last 13 years. It’s on him. He disappears, comes back, disappears, comes back. I’m standing strong, so I’m not here to chase fame. I’m a real person. I’ll fight whoever’s in front of me, whether it’s him or the next person. I don’t matter to me. I’m always in big fights. I make the big fights.”
With backing of Alashikh and the clash being at a locale' like 90,000+ seat Wembley Stadium, both Fury and Joshua could get guarantees of over $50 million to fight each other.
That's awfully hard from either to walk away from, at this stage.