It was supposed to be set in stone, but now more fresh doubts have emerged over the proposed Tyson Fury v Anthony Joshua fight.
The long-awaited meeting between the two British heavyweights was reportedly set to be held at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium on Friday, December 11 with the fight being shown around the world live on streaming giants Netflix.
But now a further twist in the tale of the will-they-won’t-they saga arrived over the weekend after comments from Dana White – the UFC president who is now involved in boxing.
White, chief of Zuffa Boxing, was officially named as a promoter alongside The Ring, which is owned by Saudi Arabian powerbroker Turki Alalshikh. White was asked about the prospect of the mega-fight whilst in attendance at London’s Copper Box at the weekend.
He responded: “I’m involved in the fight. If Eddie Hearn really cared about this fight, first of all it would have happened a long time ago. Number two, he could finance the thing himself.
“The guy who is supposed to be helping the fight has been hurting the fight. He hasn’t done the fight any favours.”
Further uncertainty came when Fury, no stranger to a public outburst, then posted on social media claiming Joshua and Hearn were “trying to pull out” and blamed the dispute largely on Hearn’s objection to White’s involvement.
Hearn, meanwhile, posted a picture with a shush emoji accompanied with the message: “Bet against me.”
An important milestone is due to come on Wednesday (September 30) when the two fighters are scheduled to come face-to-face at a news conference held at the British Airways Arc in London. No time has yet been confirmed but there will be plenty of intrigue as to whether even the event goes ahead.
