Barry Hearn is confident that a showdown between heavyweight titans Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury is on the horizon.
Both fighters have had impressive careers, with Fury earning titles such as the WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, IBO and the WBC at various points due to victories over notable opponents like Wladimir Klitschko and Deontay Wilder. Similarly, Joshua has also secured all but the WBC heavyweight title in his career, defeating the likes of Alexander Povetkin, Joseph Parker and Andy Ruiz Jr.
Despite being two of the most decorated heavyweights of their generation, Fury and Joshua have yet to face each other in the ring. However, Matchroom founder Hearn suggested this could change soon during Thursday’s episode of The Barry Hearn Show. He shared: “Each fight has to be judged on its own merits. AJ and Fury will fight because his excellency, Turki Alalshikh, is committed to do their fight.
READ MORE:Butterbean causes concern with claim about Mike Tyson’s condition ahead of Jake Paul clash
“This man is a boxing fanatic, by the way. The guy that’s pumping in all these hundreds of millions into boxing in the Middle East – Saudi in particular – has got plans to go bigger and further outside Saudi. That’s gonna be an interesting development because he brings with it the one thing that fighters love more than anything else – huge purses.
“And he will be the one that will insist that this fight happens,” reports the Mirror. Turki Alalshikh is a Saudi Arabian who is also the Chairman of the General Entertainment Authority. He has been instrumental in staging some of the world’s most captivating boxing events under the Riyadh Season banner as of recently – including Fury and Joshua’s bouts with Francis Ngannou, Terrance Crawford’s bout with Israil Madrimov in August, Fury’s bout with Oleksandr Usyk in May, and Joshua’s recent scrap with Daniel Dubois.
He could use his power and influence to finally get a much-awaited bout between Fury and Joshua over the line in the near future. Hearn also likened the much-anticipated clash between the two fighters to the legendary bout between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr – which fans had to wait a long time to see.
He added: “Let me take you back. So, Mayweather against Pacquiao was the fight ten, fifteen years ago everyone was talking about. And it was a similar situation – everyone’s saying ‘when’s it gonna happen? When’s it gonna happen? ‘ It didn’t happen for years, and years, and years.
“And everyone went ‘well, they’re both past their best now’, the cynics. That fight grossed over $500million dollars. Why? Because all those years of waiting was in fact building the level of the fight to the point of view; Yes, people got frustrated, yes, people got a bit bored with it.
“But when it happened, it was mega. But is this fight gonna happen? Yes.” Mayweather secured a unanimous decision victory after 12 rounds against a previously considered invincible Pacquiao in May 2015, enhancing his record to 48-0 and capturing the WBO welterweight title.
Speculation has been rife about AJ and Fury stepping into the ring together for what would be an epic encounter that every boxing enthusiast across the globe is eager to see. The year 2025 might just be when this dream match materialises, depending on the outcome of Fury’s rematch with Usyk slated for December.
The undefeated Ukrainian was crowned the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world back in May, after defeating Fury via a split decision over 12 rounds. If he fails for the second time this winter, a fight between him and AJ seems the most logical next step.
Joshua experienced defeat at the hands of Dubois at Wembley last month, losing out on the IBF title when he was taken down with a powerful right hand in the fifth round. While he may opt to invoke a rematch clause with DDD next year, he could be enticed to finally face off against the ‘Gypsy King’ if he loses to Usyk again in two months’ time.