Promoter Eddie Hearn is open to a renegotiation of the Anthony Joshua vs Tyson Fury contract if there is a ‘beneficial reason’ for staging the fight in America.

Hearn has reiterated that Joshua has signed a deal for a heavyweight clash against Fury, which stipulates that the bout must be staged in the UK.

But Turki Al-Sheikh, who is funding the British blockbuster bout, confirmed that a decision is yet to be made on the venue, and the US has emerged as the most likely location.

“Turki Al-Sheikh is paying the bill, and it’s an extortionate one, so it’s got to work for him,” Hearn said to Sky Sports.

“But we signed up for the fight to take place in the UK, and it’s very clear within our contract that that’s where the fight has to happen

“Now, if there’s another reason why it might be more beneficial for us to do it in America, we’ll have those conversations. At the moment, there’s been no request for that

“AJ was quite insistent that the fight take place in the UK, and that’s why we put it into the contract.

No date or location for the bout has officially been confirmed, but Fury’s promoter Frank Warren exclusively told Sky Sports earlier this week that he was adamant the bout would go ahead at some point in late 2026.

Fury is set to return to the ring on August 1 in Dublin ahead of his meeting with Joshua, but is yet to reveal his opponent.

Hearn also added that should a renegotiation be required, the terms of the contract would not delay the fight.

“Because of the working relationship with Turki Al-Sheikh, that’s something that he wants to do,” Hearn said.

“We’d entertain the conversation, but if not, we’d just go ahead with the fight in the UK.”

Joshua will fight Albanian Kristian Prenga on July 25 in Jeddah, and declared earlier this month that he is stronger than ever.

Hearn said that any contract talk would not distract Joshua from securing victory against Prenga, explaining: “He keeps himself out of the loop of it all.

Anthony Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn convinced his mega-fight with Tyson Fury will happen in the UK with Wembley a ‘clear favourite’ to stage the clash of the titans; Hearn adds he has never seen AJ speak so clearly about the future

“The fight can take place in the snow. I don’t really care, so long as it takes place.”

Eddie Hearn remains confident Anthony Joshua’s mega-fight with Tyson Fury will take place in the UK this November.

Joshua will make his comeback on July 25 in a tune-up bout against unfancied Albanian Kristian Prenga while Fury has said he plans to fight on August 1 in Dublin

Should they both win then British heavyweights will be on a collision course for a long-awaited showdown.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Hearn confirmed: “The contract is very clear. It specifically states the fight must take place in the UK. We also understand that Turki Alalshikh is paying for the fight, so if he comes up with a plan to stage the fight somewhere else, there will be a sensible conversation and a renegotiation of that contract if we want to move forward with that

“The reason that clause was in the contract in the first place was because we all want the fight to take place in the UK. It’s the biggest fight in the history of British boxing, and I know there’s talk of Las Vegas and stuff like this, but I just think it would be a shame not to stage this fight in Britain

“The fight will take place really where Turki Alalshikh wants it to take place. However, if that is outside the UK there will have to be another conversation with myself, with Anthony Joshua, and I believe with Tyson Fury, who has the same request in his contract for a fight in the UK.”

Hearn says Wembley, which held a record 98,128 for Joshua’s shock defeat to Daniel Dubois in September 2024 is “clear favourite” to hold the fight ahead of Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and the Principality Stadium in Cardiff.

“No confirmed date yet but the plan for the fight is to take place in November, so pick your Saturday in November,” Hearn continued.

“I think middle Saturday in November is a good shout, but again, we’ve got to get though Prenga and Fury’s fight, which looks like August 1.”

Conor Benn defeated bitter rival Chris Eubank Jr in their rematch at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last November, leaving Hearn with no doubt AJ-Fury can happen – even in wintry conditions!

He joked: “That fight can take place in the snow – I don’t really care, as long as it takes place.”

Promoter Hearn also reflected on Joshua’s press conference ahead of his fight with 35-year-old Prenga.

Joshua will mark his return to the ring in his first fight since his knockout victory over Jake Paul in December.

Shortly after his win, Joshua was involved in a tragic car accident in Nigeria that killed two of his close friends and left the former unified heavyweight champion with minor injuries.

“I’ve never heard Joshua speak so clearly about what he wants to do and his focus in the sport,” said Hearn. “There’s been a lot of pressure over the years. A lot of new businesses, management companies, big sponsorship deals but AJ is a perfectionist. He’s always tried to get everything perfect across all his different businesses in and out of the ring and his projects.

“I think it’s taken some of his focus away from boxing. I think he’s realised now, ‘look, I’ve got one last run at this so I want to give it 110 per cent and full focus’ and obviously he’s been in training camp with Oleksandr Usyk and that’s been a massive plus for him.

“The proof will be in the fight. You’ve heard me say a million times, he looks great, camps great, he’s happy, but I’ve never seen him speak so clearly about the future.

“He’s talking about Prenga, he’s talking about Tyson Fury, he’s talking about trying to become undisputed world champion again, so he’s in a good place with his boxing at the moment.

“He’s expected to beat Prenga but it’s a really big banana skin because we know what awaits and it’s the signed fight between him and Tyson Fury, so everyone has got their fingers crossed for July 25.”

A decade of missed chances – How Joshua and Fury never happened

Joshua and Fury, two of the biggest names in British boxing, have circled one another for the best part of a decade. Fury first became a heavyweight world champion when he upset Wladimir Klitschko a decade ago. Joshua turned professional after winning Olympic gold at London 2012 and rocketed through the pro ranks.

But by the time Joshua picked up his first world title belt in 2016, Fury had stepped away from the sport.

Fury would eventually return and beat Deontay Wilder to become the WBC world champion. Joshua held the unified IBF, WBO and WBA championships and the two were close to fighting in an undisputed heavyweight championship fight.

It was not to be, Fury boxed a third fight with Wilder instead and Joshua lost to Oleksandr Usyk. The Ukrainian also defeated Fury, who retired again at the start of last year.

When Fury returned to beat Makhmudov in London earlier this month, Joshua was waiting for the all-clear to resume full training after sustaining injuries in a terrible accident in which two of his close friends and members of his team lost their lives. Joshua is now in camp working with his former rival Usyk, who has backed AJ to beat Fury.

With one more hurdle to clear for Joshua, Kristian Prenga on July 25, the two rivals will finally box in the most richly anticipated heavyweight bout the UK will have ever seen.

The long-awaited, much-hyped megafight between former heavyweight champions Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua is inching closer to being announced … or is it?

Questions remain over if, when and where two of the world’s best-paid athletes will finally share a ring after a frustrating series of failed attempts to make the fight happen. Then there is the battle out of the ring between promoters fighting for control, riches and influence. Could that power struggle KO hopes of the fight happening?

And is a rivalry that started over a sparring session in a London gym more than a decade ago finally set to play out thousands of miles from their homes and fanbases in the Nevada desert?

Here are some of the key topics of the never-ending story of whether we will ever get Fury vs. Joshua.

What are the chances the fight actually happens this time?

After many failed attempts to make the megafight, it looks highly likely that this time it will happen in November, and could even be announced in the ring after Joshua’s warmup bout against unknown Kristian Prenga in Saudi Arabia on July 25. Prenga has been selected as a safe enough opponent not to derail plans. Nothing has been confirmed, but Fury has also been penciled in for a warmup bout in Dublin on Aug. 1.

A venue and date have yet to be confirmed for Fury vs. Joshua, but Netflix is the broadcaster. Major figures in making the fight declared that contracts had been signed in April.

“To my friends in Great Britain — it’s happening. It’s signed,” Turki Alalshikh, the chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority, posted on social media. Alalshikh has financed some of the biggest fights boxing can make in the past few years.

“Signed, sealed, delivered! AJ v Fury is on!” Joshua’s promoter, Matchroom boss Eddie Hearn, said on social media.

Following Fury’s routine decision win over Arslanbek Makhmudov in April, Joshua explained that he would face off with Fury only after the fight contracts were signed and he had a warmup bout. Joshua has not boxed since defeating Jake Paul on Dec. 19 in Miami. Joshua then was involved in a car crash, which killed his two close friends Sina Ghami and Latif Ayodele in Nigeria on Dec. 29.

In a post on Matchroom’s Instagram account, Joshua recently said: “They’ve dangled the carrot in front of me saying if I can beat Prenga I can fight Tyson Fury, so I’m fully locked in on getting the job done because that’s the fight I dream of. It’s a big opportunity for me and this year is a big year for me. Now I know the fight is signed and sealed, he’s more than welcome to step in the ring and he’ll be the last hurdle of 2026.”

For his part, Fury said in April that he was only interested in fighting Joshua.

“If it ain’t Anthony Joshua next, I’m not interested in boxing,” Fury said in his postfight news conference. “I’ll eat a thousand Easter eggs, go up to 35 stone [490 pounds]. I’m out. I’m not interested. It’s either him or I’m gone again.”

Why has a Fury vs. Joshua fight never been made despite years of negotiations?

Some obstacles were mandatory title defenses, failures to meet contract deadlines and losses by both Fury and Joshua.

The English rivals were first seriously linked to fighting each other in 2020, when they held all four major heavyweight titles between them and agreed to a two-fight deal. But in 2021, Fury contractually owed

Deontay Wilder a rematch, and Fury vs. Joshua was off before it was officially announced. They went their separate ways as Joshua twice lost to Oleksandr Usyk in 2021 and 2022, which cost him three world titles. Later in 2022, Joshua accepted an offer to challenge Fury for his WBC belt. But Fury claimed Joshua failed to meet a deadline to sign a contract and instead Fury fought Derek Chisora in December 2022.

Two years later, enter Saudi power broker Alalshikh, who pushed for the fight to be made. Those plans were ruined when Daniel Dubois knocked out Joshua in September 2024. Fury also lost twice to Usyk in 2024, then retired and the fight seemed lost. But after Joshua viciously dispatched YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul and Fury began talking about another comeback, the fight was again being discussed.

After Joshua’s car crash, the fight again seemed destined to fall apart. But following Fury’s comeback win in April, reports surfaced that both sides had signed contracts. And this time, no mandatory obligations are preventing the fight from moving forward since there are no titles at stake.

What is different about the current negotiations compared to past attempts?

Alalshikh’s financial backing is the biggest reason why this fight could finally happen. He wasn’t involved in the early attempts, but he has a track record of getting promoters to work with each other to get the biggest fights made over the past 2½ years.

Age is also a big factor: Fury turns 38 in August, Joshua will be 37 by the time their fight date arrives. They are both unquestionably past their primes, have each lost twice to Usyk and are running out of time as elite-level boxers.

Where could Fury vs. Joshua take place?

When Fury urged Joshua to “let’s give the fight fans what they want, the ‘Battle of Britain'” after his fight in April, most of us assumed it would be in their home of England.

But as confirmation of the megafight gets closer, it seems it might not take place on British soil but in the United States, possibly in Las Vegas.

Fight fans — mostly from the U.K. — have been calling for Joshua and Fury to meet for years, yet the vast majority will be priced out of attending the historic megafight if it’s held in the U.S. rather than in front of 100,000 at Wembley Stadium in London. One of the problems with staging Fury vs. Joshua at Wembley or Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, where Fury last boxed, is the U.K. weather in November. But Fury fought Chisora at Tottenham in December 2022, and Alalshikh promoted a middleweight fight between Conor Benn and Chris Eubank Jr. also at Tottenham last November.

Matchroom Boxing’s Hearn, Joshua’s promoter, says Joshua’s contract states the fight must take place in the U.K. But the decision of when and where it happens will come down to Alalshikh, who is bankrolling the fight.

The involvement of Netflix might also explain why the fight could be heading stateside, with more viewers guaranteed in the U.S. time zones. If the chosen venue is outside of the U.K., Joshua’s contract will have to be rewritten, but that is not expected to be a stumbling block to making the fight happen.

Who promotes Fury vs. Joshua?

Alalshikh’s financial backing is the biggest reason why this fight could finally happen. He wasn’t involved in the early attempts, but he has a track record of getting promoters to work with each other to get the biggest fights made over the past 2½ years.

Age is also a big factor: Fury turns 38 in August, Joshua will be 37 by the time their fight date arrives. They are both unquestionably past their primes, have each lost twice to Usyk and are running out of time as elite-level boxers.

Where could Fury vs. Joshua take place?

When Fury urged Joshua to “let’s give the fight fans what they want, the ‘Battle of Britain'” after his fight in April, most of us assumed it would be in their home of England.

But as confirmation of the megafight gets closer, it seems it might not take place on British soil but in the United States, possibly in Las Vegas.

Fight fans — mostly from the U.K. — have been calling for Joshua and Fury to meet for years, yet the vast majority will be priced out of attending the historic megafight if it’s held in the U.S. rather than in front of 100,000 at Wembley Stadium in London. One of the problems with staging Fury vs. Joshua at Wembley or Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, where Fury last boxed, is the U.K. weather in November. But Fury fought Chisora at Tottenham in December 2022, and Alalshikh promoted a middleweight fight between Conor Benn and Chris Eubank Jr. also at Tottenham last November.

Matchroom Boxing’s Hearn, Joshua’s promoter, says Joshua’s contract states the fight must take place in the U.K. But the decision of when and where it happens will come down to Alalshikh, who is bankrolling the fight.

The involvement of Netflix might also explain why the fight could be heading stateside, with more viewers guaranteed in the U.S. time zones. If the chosen venue is outside of the U.K., Joshua’s contract will have to be rewritten, but that is not expected to be a stumbling block to making the fight happen.

Who promotes Fury vs. Joshua?

Zuffa Boxing has even been linked with signing Fury in the past week, but Hearn insists that, according to contracts, Zuffa and White cannot have any promotional involvement in the event. Also, given Warren’s legal situation with Zuffa, any involvement of Zuffa would be combustible.

“I negotiated the fight contract three months ago with Sela and Turki Alalshikh,” Hearn said on June 11. “Dana White has no clue what is in that contract. No. 1, Dana White, TKO, Zuffa can have no promotional involvement in that show at all.”

Zuffa Boxing did not immediately respond to ESPN’s request for comment.

Fury traveled to Washington to be at White’s UFC event at the White House on June 14, which fueled speculation about Fury’s link to Zuffa. Fury teased a “big announcement” with White, which failed to happen last weekend.

It would be a surprise to see either Hearn or Warren absent from the news conference table when the fight is announced, but it is Alalshikh who makes the decisions now.

Can Fury legally travel to the US?

It seems he can. Fury turned up at the UFC event at the White House last Sunday, his first visit to the U.S. in 5½ years. His absence is believed to be due to his relationship with alleged Irish crime boss Daniel Kinahan, who used to be Fury’s adviser. Kinahan was arrested in April over alleged serious organized crime offenses. Fury’s presence on the White House lawn alongside President Donald Trump and White is an indicator he could fight on U.S. soil again.

Is Fury-Joshua the biggest fight in U.K. boxing history?

If it takes place in the U.K., yes. If it goes to the U.S., fewer people in the U.K. will stay up to 4 or 5 a.m. to watch it live and it will get less attention, so maybe not. It might generate the most money, with the biggest purses, but how will it go down with the British public if the drama unfolds in the U.S. in the middle of the night?

We will have to wait and see on its significance, but the fight has lost some of its gloss of five years ago, when Fury and Joshua were both world champions. It is still a huge event and would eclipse recent big fights featuring Britons such as Lennox Lewis vs. Frank Bruno; Joshua vs. Wladimir Klitschko and Usyk; Fury vs. Usyk, Wilder, Klitschko; David Haye vs. Klitschko, and Carl Froch vs. George Groves II.

But how will history remember their nontitle heavyweight bout at the tail end of their careers?

When Nigel Benn fought Chris Eubank in Manchester in 1990, 16 million viewers watched the super middleweight bout. Fury vs. Joshua will be measured against the likes of that fight and also some of Ricky Hatton’s big nights, such as when nearly 20,000 fans traveled from the U.K. to Las Vegas to see him fight Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2007. Fewer would be expected to follow Fury and Joshua to the Strip later this year.

With mounting speculation that Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua could be staged in America, Frank Warren insists no decision has yet been made on the venue – but the heavyweight mega-fight will still go ahead this year as long as both Fury and AJ win their respective tune-up bouts

Tyson Fury’s heavyweight super-fight with Anthony Joshua is not in danger of collapse, insists Frank Warren.

Fury and Joshua are both former world champions and long-time rivals who have been on the brink of boxing before, only to see previous efforts come to nothing.

But Fury vs Joshua could still potentially take place in a British stadium. “Nothing’s been decided yet,” Frank Warren, Fury’s promoter, told Sky Sports.