Maybe, just maybe, we could see one of the biggest fights in boxing history happen between Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury.
The two heavyweights have been on a collision course for a number of years and earlier in May momentum gathered when Anthony Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn told Sky Sports: “We have no problem signing now to fight Fury in 2021.”
Fury also mentioned the fight whilst on an Instagram live, saying: “We’ve got the two AJ fights, well one and then obviously when I batter him, he’ll want a rematch.”
Both have business to take care of though before they can meet. After putting in a sensational performance last time out, Fury has a third fight with Deontay Wilder to contend with once safe to do so, while Joshua has to fight his mandatory Kubrat Pulev, a fight which was scheduled to take place at The Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
If both are successful in their next bouts, then the mega fight the world wants to see should be upon us. Here’s a look at four potential venues…
1. Wembley Stadium, London
You know when there’s a big fight in the UK, that Wembley Stadium is spoken about as a potential venue and this one is no different.
There’s plenty of arenas throughout the country that could stage the fight, but with the magnitude of it they could all be sold out a number of times over for this fight, so where better in the UK than for the sport of Boxing to take over the home of football for a night.
It’s a proven venue for Boxing, with Carl Froch v George Groves 2 kicking us off at the redeveloped Wembley Stadium back in 2014. The fight saw Froch stop Groves in round eight in front of 80,000 people.
Since then, Joshua has had a couple of successful nights in front of sold out crowds there, beating both Wladimir Klitschko and Alexander Povetkin.
2. T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas
It’s most fighters’ dream to spar in the ‘fight capital of the world’, Las Vegas, and this could certainly be a front runner for this mega bout.
The bright lights of the Las Vegas strip have held many huge nights of pugilism over the years, with names such as Ricky Hatton, Floyd Mayweather, Amir Khan and Fury all having topped the bill.
Fury has made Las Vegas his Boxing home recently, as his last three fights have all been there, with his fight against Otto Wallin being at the T-Mobile Arena. Whilst Las Vegas is a 10-hour flight from the UK, there’s something special about fights being held there.
As we’ve seen in the past with Mancunian Hatton, fight fans will go in their numbers from the UK and if this fight was to land there, with the size of the occasion I’m sure the UK would take over Vegas once again…
3. Diriyah Arena, Saudi Arabia
This is the venue that staged Joshua’s successful rematch against Andy Ruiz Jr in December, with Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn describing the venue to TalkSport as “utterly breathtaking.” What better place for a fight that would surely be “breathtaking” as well…
Saudi Arabia has also hosted the World Boxing Super Series Super-Middleweight final between Callum Smith and George Groves, as well as Amir Khan’s fight against Billy Dib.
Whilst the country perhaps wasn’t on everybody’s radar for Joshua v Ruiz 2, it certainly showed that it can put on and host a terrific live event, and I’m sure it will be in the picture again if this heavyweight bout for all the belts is to happen.
4. Madison Square Garden, New York
This multi-sport venue has hosted some of the biggest names in the sport such as Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier and Oscar De La Hoya, as well as both Joshua and Fury.
The venue was the host for Joshua’s only defeat of his career agains Ruiz last year, as well as Fury’s fight with Steve Cunningham in 2013, which saw Fury climb off the canvas and knockout his opponent!
Sitting on the east coast of the United States, the ‘Big Apple’ is just under an 8-hour flight from Manchester and there is only a 5-hour time difference between the two cities, meaning that the main event start time would be slightly earlier than a fight on the west coast!
What the fans say…
I am doing a piece for @MM_newsonline about potential venues for @anthonyfjoshua v @Tyson_Fury if it happens next year.
Where would you like to see the fight take place?#journorequest | #FridayFeeling | #Boxing
— Nick (@NP18_) May 15, 2020
This fight is likely to sell out wherever it ends up, but we asked the fans to vote where they would like to see it take place.
67.4% of the fans who responded, voted for the fight to take place at Wembley Stadium, with fan Jack Towers agreeing it should be in the UK.
“Quite simply this is the biggest fight in British boxing history. Two Brits fighting for all the marbles in the heavyweight division. For it not to be in England, doesn’t sit right with me.”
Whilst the vast majority of support was for the bout to be staged in the UK, there was support for it taking place at Madison Square Garden, as 22% voted for that venue.
Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena was third choice with 9% of the vote with Diriyah Arena claiming the final 2.3%.
Wherever the bout takes place, it’s a certainty that the eyes of the world would be on there. Let’s hope that both men come through their next challenge and that we do get to see the biggest fight for a long time… who knows, if there is a round two we could see multiple venues used!
Image courtesy of FightHype.com
