Why Didnt Anthony Joshua Want to Continue Fighting
Anthony Joshua will attempt to become a three-time unified heavyweight world champion when he goes out for revenge against Oleksandr Usyk in Saudi Arabia on August 19.
Joshua dropped a unanimous points decision when he faced the masterful Ukrainian in London last September and will hope for a repeat of the instant vengeance he dished out to Andy Ruiz Jr. in Riyadh in 2019, on the back of his only other prior defeat.
Both of those setbacks also had the added irritation of kicking the fight fans all over the world want to see a little further down the road. Indeed, if Joshua loses again, will the appetite remain for him to fight Tyson Fury or would that mega-bout have lost too much of its shine?
In this unprecedented era of blockbusting British stadium fights, Joshua was very notable for his absence as Fury dominated Dillian Whyte at a sold-out Wembley in April. Ever since 80,000 saw Carl Froch knock out George Groves on his farewell appearance at Wembley in 2014, those nights have generally been AJ nights.
Joshua's thrilling 11th-round win over Wladimir Klitschko began a run of four consecutive capacity shows across Wembley and Cardiff's Principality Stadium, with Carlos Takam, Joseph Parker and Alexander Povetkin all defeated by the London 2012 Olympic gold medalist.
MORE: How many times have British fighters clashed for the world heavyweight title?
A showdown with Fury on a similar stage felt inevitable, but a typically frustrating story of boxing politics and awfully bad timing unfolded.
Why didn't Tyson Fury fight Anthony Joshua after he beat Wladimir Klitschko?
When Fury scored a huge upset win with a masterclass performance against Klitschko in Dusseldorf in 2015, the prospect of a meeting with Joshua was already bubbling under nicely.
The following month, Joshua claimed the best win of his 15-fight career with a seventh-round knockout of Whyte in a barnburner at O2 Arena - a contest that both enhanced the reputations and highlighted the vulnerabilities of Britain's two best heavyweight prospects.
Joshua's graduation from prospect to champion was swift when, just four months later, he stopped the overmatched Charles Martin in two rounds to lift the IBF title.
That was one of the belts Fury took from Klitschko but the IBF stripped him of for agreeing to a rematch with the Ukrainian great as opposed to facing their mandatory challenger Vyacheslav Glazkov, who suffered a knee injury in their January 2016 fight - heralding a TKO win for Martin and one of the shortest and most forgettable reigns in heavyweight history.
Joshua began to build something far more substantial, unifying by winning the WBA title against Klitschko and the WBO by out-pointing Parker.
Those belts were available because Fury sunk into a battle with drink, drugs and depression that saw him balloon in weight and spend more than two-and-a-half years out of the ring.
After his up-and-down classic with Klitschko, a delirious and possibly-concussed Joshua called out Fury in the immediate aftermath. But at that point, in April 2017, the main focus was WBC champion and knockout specialist Deontay Wilder.
Why did Deontay Wilder fight Tyson Fury instead of Anthony Joshua?
Negotiations for a Joshua vs. Wilder fight became increasingly fractious, with claim, counter-claim and promotional self-interest on both sides meaning a deal remained elusive.
Instead, Wilder agreed to face Fury in December 2018 after the former champion had a couple of low-key tune-up bouts against Sefer Seferi and Francesco Pianeta. Joshua felt he saw through the Bronze Bomber's play.
"I know the strategy is for him to fight Fury after a three-year layoff," he told Sky News. "He's got a good chance of beating him. It will boost his profile so when he comes back to the negotiating table he will have a better leg to stand on."
It was a plan that backfired, both for Wilder immediately and Joshua in the longer term.
Fury outboxed Wilder for the majority of their initial bout, but two knockdowns - the latter leading to the Gypsy King's remarkable 12th round "resurrection" - saw him salvage a draw on the cards. Scores remained to be settled, the public were enraptured and Fury and Wilder were locked in one another's orbit.
By the time they met for a second time in February 2020, with Fury battering Wilder to the first loss of his career in seven rounds, Joshua had suffered a shock defeat to Andy Ruiz on his US debut and avenged that setback in Saudi Arabia at the end of 2019.
A few weeks after a packed MGM Grand in Las Vegas enjoyed Fury's bravura display, the world changed. The coronavirus pandemic made blockbuster heavyweight showdowns with massive crowds a pipe dream for the foreseeable future.
Did Tyson Fury agree to fight Anthony Joshua?
At the end of 2020, Joshua fulfilled his IBF mandatory with an authoritative win over Kubrat Pulev before a limited crowd at Wembley Arena. That cleared the way for a Fury vs. Joshua showdown and the boxers' camps agreed to a two-fight deal in March 2021, with the first of those pencilled in for August.
That remains as close as they have come to sharing a ring competitively because Wilder had an ace up his sleeve. In a May 2021 arbitration hearing, it was ruled Wilder was contractually entitled to a third fight with Fury.
MORE: How Tyson Fury overcame drugs and mental health torment to rule the heavyweight world
At the time, this pleased next to nobody outside of Wilder's immediate circle. Fury was seen to have conclusively settled the argument in their second fight, branding his foe a "joke" for purportedly demanding $20 million to step aside and allow the Joshua fight.
Joshua turned his anger in Fury's direction: "The world now sees you for the fraud you are. You've let boxing down!" he tweeted.
"You lied to the fans and led them on. Used my name for clout, not a fight. Bring me any championship fighter who can handle their business correctly."
After the final instalment of the Fury vs. Wilder trilogy, 11 brutal rounds where both men hit the canvas and the Briton emerged victorious, no one looked like a fraud and no one felt let down. Out of complete shambles came a heavyweight contest for the ages.
They boxed two weeks after Joshua had the misfortune of running into a championship fighter who could handle his business very correctly indeed.
Former undisputed cruiserweight champion Usyk mesmerised and outworked an unusually-timid Joshua to take his three belts at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
AJ must now rematch Usyk - an entirely different animal to Ruiz, who merely looked like he'd eaten several different animals before their second encounter.
Fury, if you take him at his word, is now in retirement after his victory over Joshua's old rival Whyte. However, he has had plenty to say about the prospect of fighting Joshua over recent weeks - most notably how much he would or wouldn't like to get paid.
How much money does Tyson Fury want to face Anthony Joshua?
Quite simply, it depends on which day of the week you speak to Fury and which of his mischievous multiple personas is addressing the masses.
Less than two months after apparently riding off into the sunset in his Wembley afterglow, Fury named his price as far as Joshua and Usyk were concerned.
"I'd probably want half a [billion] to come out of retirement," Fury told talkSPORT. "I'm telling you the truth, if you want me out of retirement, it's gonna cost half a billi.
"AJ's bubble's been burst, he's been beat twice. He ain't a virgin anymore; he's been battered from pillar to post by a fat man on three weeks' notice [Ruiz] and by a middleweight [Usyk].
"Usyk hasn't [been beaten], but that's a middleweight coming up from cruiserweight to heavyweight – none of my interest at all.
"If it's half a billi, then I won't say no, will I? What you've gotta do is go and get half a billi, and then the 'Gypsy King' will come out and solve all [Joshua's] problems for him.
"Because if AJ gets beat again off Usyk, then there's only gonna be one man to redeem this great fighting nation of the United Kingdom, and he goes by the name of Tyson Fury. I can solve all the problems, the embarrassment, all that stuff that's gonna happen."
Be happy for @anthonyjoshua!! pic.twitter.com/Cs55zNnugz
— TYSON FURY (@Tyson_Fury) June 29, 2022
Those were the thoughts of Tyson Fury the patriotic businessman, but everyman Tyson Fury, friend of the downtrodden had a different take not long afterwards.
"It's all about money, Mr Businessman [Joshua] - he's not a fighting man," Fury said during his ongoing speaking tour, where VIP packages for the Manchester leg are priced between £110.95 and £318.45.
"I swear to God I hope he wins the fight against Usyk so that I can come out of retirement and fight him for free.
"However, the terms are this - I want it at Wembley stadium, I want it free to enter and I want it on free-to-air in television in this country.
"I'll fight him in England, not abroad in a foreign country for more money, here for free for the people."
The extremities of those two hilarious bargaining positions do confirm one thing. Fury still loves to get the boxing world talking about him and one fight above all others still guarantees more tongues wagging than ever before.
Source: https://www.sportingnews.com/us/boxing/news/why-isnt-anthony-joshua-fighting-tyson-fury-how-ajs-undisputed-megafight-broke-down/ecahixybyiieidi73xs0qluq
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