HEAVY WEATHER
But Tyson Fury’s comeback is still off for now, despite social media bluster
Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury are still going in different directions
ANTHONY JOSHUA will defend his IBF and WBA heavyweight titles against WBO champion Joseph Parker in a unification showdown on March 31 at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium, Boxing News understands. But Tyson Fury, despite public promises of a return, is still stalling on re-applying for his licence with the British Boxing Board of Control.
At the time of going to press, Parker’s manager, David Higgins, was in the UK alongside his fighter thrashing out the final details of the deal with Matchroom’s Eddie Hearn. It is expected that the bout will be formally announced by all parties on Friday (January 12) at a London hotel.
The event will be broadcast on Sky Sports Box Office, and will mark 28-yearold Joshua’s sixth world title fight, the most recent coming in the same Cardiff stadium, an October stoppage of the tough Carlos Takam. There were two key benefits for a Joshua contest being staged in that venue during colder climates in the UK: a roof, and – most importantly – the 80,000 capacity.
Should Joshua emerge victorious, Hearn told Boxing News the next assignment could be on foreign soil, before the heavyweight’s year culminates with a bumper clash with WBC boss Deontay Wilder.
“The aim is to fight three times this year,” said Hearn. “We must get that fight away in March, the first one, because it gives you the opportunity to go again in August and then December,” Hearn said.
“One in America, and then Wilder. Or Wilder next and then [Tyson] Fury, maybe. If he [Fury] gets his licence that could be a big fight, but he needs a couple of fights first.
“We want all the belts by the end of the year.”
Fury, inactive since 2015, is widely expected to make his return this year after UK Anti-doping (UKAD) stated he would be allowed to fight again following a backdated two-year ban for testing positive for the steroid nandrolone.
But the 29-year-old, who has claimed he will be back in the ring by April, is yet to apply for the suspension of his boxing licence to be lifted, despite an invitation from the BBBOFC to do so.
“I have not had any contact with Tyson since the UKAD decision,” the Board’s General Secretary, Robert Smith, told Boxing News. “I spoke to [Fury’s promoter] Mick Hennessy before Christmas because I wanted to get the situation resolved before then, but I’ve heard nothing since.
“It is disappointing, and I don’t understand the logic of not coming into the office to resolve the situation.”
Fury lost his licence in 2016 after he tested positive for cocaine, a drug he claimed he was taking for recreational purposes after struggling with depression.
Smith, who confirmed Fury “might” be subjected to random testing if and when he approaches them to fight again, said: “Before he gets his suspension lifted and fights again, we need to talk to the man. We need to assess his mental health, we need to see what he’s like and after that, we can advise him on what is required before he is permitted to fight again under a British licence.”