2026-08-13 11:02:38

Anthony Joshua’s long-awaited showdown with Tyson Fury could be called off if plans to stage the all-British heavyweight clash at Madison Square Garden are announced without agreement from his camp, Eddie Hearn has warned.

The former world heavyweight champions are contracted to finally meet later this year, with November 20 reportedly earmarked for a fight being backed by Saudi boxing powerbroker Turki Alalshikh and broadcaster Netflix.

But plans to take the contest to New York have created a dispute because Joshua’s contract stipulates that the fight should take place in the UK, with Hearn insisting Joshua wants British fans to have the chance to attend.

Hearn told The Punch Podcast: “The other day they wrote to us and said, ‘Just to let you know, we would like to announce the fight for New York’.

“And I said, ‘No, you can’t’. There might even be a situation where they go for it and do announce it.

“And you will probably see me coming out quite quickly and say, ‘No fight’.

“I promise you, if they announce that fight without an agreement in place to change the venue, there will be no fight and we ain’t bluffing.”

Hearn added: “We feel really strongly that this fight should be in the UK.”

The venue dispute is the latest development in a fight British boxing has waited years to see.

Joshua and Tyson Fury have held versions of the world heavyweight title during their careers but have repeatedly failed to agree a contest despite prolonged negotiations.

The pair finally signed for the fight earlier this year after Tyson returned to boxing and Joshua continued his comeback.

Hearn announced the agreement in April, and Joshua cleared another hurdle last month when he faced Kristian Prenga in Jeddah.

The 2012 Olympic super-heavyweight gold medallist suffered two knockdowns during a dramatic opening round before recovering to stop Kristian in the second.

The fight was Joshua’s latest appearance following his victory over Jake Paul in Miami in December 2025.

His preparations for returning to the ring were subsequently overshadowed by the car crash in Nigeria which killed his close friends Sina Ghami and Latif Ayodele.

Joshua was also injured in the crash and later spoke publicly about focusing on supporting their families as he resumed his career.

Fury, meanwhile, returned from retirement earlier this year to defeat Arslanbek Makhmudov on points, setting up another attempt to make the contest which has followed both men throughout much of their heavyweight careers.

Madison Square Garden has now emerged as the proposed venue for the Joshua v Fury clash, with Netflix and the Saudi organisers favouring New York.

Frank Warren, Tyson’s promoter, has declined to confirm the Garden and November 20 have been finalised, saying the decision ultimately rests with those organising the event.

Hearn and Joshua have not ruled out a fight at Madison Square Garden altogether, but their position is that the terms of the existing agreement would have to be changed before the fight could move from Britain.

Hearn added: “We kind of want to say, ‘Well, if you want to do it in America, you have got to pay us all of this money to change.’

“Because we are not really bothered about the money – we want it in England.

“So, we want to make it so much money that they just say, ‘You know what, let’s just do it in England’.

“That is our dream scenario.”

Wembley Stadium has previously been discussed as a possible British venue, although staging the fight there could create complications over timings because of the desire to accommodate an American television audience.

Reports have suggested the proposed New York staging would allow the main event to take place at about 10pm Eastern Time – approximately 3am in Britain.

Joshua has previously headlined Wembley in some of the defining fights of his career, including his victory over Wladimir Klitschko in 2017, when he recovered from being knocked down to stop the former heavyweight champion in the 11th round.

Fury’s career has included his 2015 victory over Wladimir to become unified heavyweight champion and his trilogy against Deontay Wilder in the United States.

The pair fought once in Los Angeles and twice in Las Vegas, with Fury winning the final two contests by stoppage.

Visit Bang Premier (main website)