Fury and Joshua to meet at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium on December 11
Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua will finally meet in the ring on 11 December at Cardiff's Principality Stadium in an announced 80,000-capacity heavyweight showdown, with the bout to be broadcast globally by Netflix and the WBA 'Super' heavyweight title expected to be on the line pending confirmation from the governing body.
After more than a decade of stalled negotiations, public squabbling and false starts, the pair — each former world heavyweight champion twice — have agreed to a date and venue for a fight that many feared would never happen; the contest arrives later than many wanted and the article states both fighters are in the twilight of their careers. BBC Sport says the meeting would give both men a chance to regain a version of the heavyweight crown, and records published with the announcement list Fury as the winner of 36 pro fights with two defeats and one draw, and Joshua as the winner of 30 with four losses.
Frank Warren, Fury's promoter, repeatedly described the settlement as a series of compromises, saying: "Everybody's got to make a compromise." Warren added: "Tyson really compromised. He didn't dig his heels in." He quoted Fury as telling him: "Fine, wherever they want it, I'll do it. If they want me to go to New York, I'll go. They want it in the UK, I just want to get the fight on."
Venue selection proved a major sticking point, with BBC Sport reporting that Netflix wanted New York while Joshua, 36, was determined to fight in Britain. Eddie Hearn, Joshua's promoter, called the push to keep the bout in the UK a "two-man crusade" and said: "AJ has turned down money to keep it in the UK." Hearn added: "I wouldn't be able to look people in the eye if I was part of the movement to take this to the US." He said Joshua had requested contractual protection for a UK fight and refused to relent: "We were under so much pressure to fold," and "It was only really the support of the British public that made Joshua stand 10 toes down and say no."
The announcement also exposed competing influences in the sport: Saudi figure Turki Alalshikh publicly declared the fight and wrote, "For 15 years no-one has been able to make this fight... Back in April, I said that any announcement would come from me. I can now confirm that Fury v Joshua will be coming to the UK, as I promised British boxing fans. The time for talking is over." The involvement of UFC chief Dana White — partnered with Alalshikh through Zuffa Boxing — featured in the launch, with Netflix describing the event as a collaboration involving White and Alalshikh's The Ring; Hearn and Warren were absent from Alalshikh's announcement. Warren said both fighters' contracts stipulated the same terms on White's involvement, that White helped secure the Netflix deal, and "I don't know whether he will be front and centre or not." BBC Sport noted a London news conference will likely clarify how visible White will be and how White and Hearn will share the stage after months of disagreement.
Claims for the choice of Cardiff also differed: Hearn had publicly pushed for the Principality Stadium while Warren told BBC Sport that Queensberry and Saudi events company Sela spent several months working "quietly" with the venue and local authorities. The stadium's retractable roof made it a practical choice for a December event and BBC Sport recalled precedent in Joe Calzaghe's 2007 victory over Mikkel Kessler, which took place under a closed roof and started after 01:00 GMT. Fury-Joshua is expected to follow a similar pattern, with exact ringwalk timing left to Netflix; Hearn said his current understanding is around 01:00 or 01:30 GMT. Warren dismissed timings as extreme, saying: "If it went on in America you'd be watching it five o'clock in the morning," and adding, "It's a compromise and it's an event."
On contractual terms, Hearn said there is no rematch clause. He insisted: "We're coming in for the kind of victory that no-one will need to see the fight again." Warren suggested the winner could pursue further world-title opportunities while saying the loser's road "may end in Cardiff."
With just over seven weeks until 11 December, the principal outstanding matters are the confirmation from the WBA regarding the 'Super' title and the promotional and logistical details expected to be clarified at forthcoming events, after which the focus will shift to the fighters' preparations for the scheduled Cardiff meeting.