One of the longest standing rivalries in modern heavyweight boxing could be resolved with nothing more than a pen stroke.
British duo Anthony Joshua 27-3 (24) and Tyson Fury 34-0-1 (24) have been linked to a potential fight for the better part of a decade but despite the big men coming oh-so-close to a deal at various stages over the years, the two sides have invariably drifted apart.
That could well change with the intervention of Saudi royal advisor Turki Alalsheikh.
Alalsheikh has already shown his ability to make big fights, helped along in no small part by a budget that can see fighters receive a few extra zeros on their pay cheques.
Former two-time unified heavyweight champion Joshua will face former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou 0-1 in at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh on March 8. WBC heavyweight titleholder Fury will clash with WBA, WBO, IBF and Ring Magazine champion Oleksandr Usyk 21-0 (14) in their rescheduled fight at the same venue on May 18.
None of these fights would be happening without the involvement of Alalsheikh.
“His Excellency said the winner of this fight faces the winner of Fury-Usyk,” said Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn to The MMA Hour on Monday night.
“That is a dream chance for us because we chased that for so long.
“AJ is going to beat Francis Ngannou and then he’s going to beat the winner of Fury-Usyk and he’s going to become the undisputed heavyweight world champion.”
The Matchroom Boxing boss isn’t the only one who thinks the long-awaited fight is on the horizon. Joshua’s trainer Ben Davison thinks it could happen sooner rather than later too.
“If there’s one thing I will say, it’s that if it’s going to happen then Turki Alalsheikh, his Excellency, is the person to do it. He’s delivering every single time,” Davison told Full Circle.
“I know there are occasions where promoters say things, then eventually do it. With him, it’s about getting it done and then talking about it. It wouldn’t surprise me if he has loads of things already signed off and done and we just don’t know it.
“Unless he’s just that capable in being able to get it all done within 24 hours! I don’t know, you know. Tyson’s situation is a bit unpredictable if he’s going to have a Usyk rematch, even an Ngannou rematch, but the fight with AJ is one fight fans want to see. It has been the fight they’ve wanted for years, let’s see.”
Fury and Joshua will soon have a common opponent in Ngannou. The 37-year-old Cameroonian pushed Fury to his limit in October last year, dropping him in the third round with a left hook before ultimately losing a 10-round split decision in their non-title fight.
Even he is not prepared to say who he thinks would win a fight between the British rivals.
“Fights are something that you can’t really predict. You can have an outside statistic but unless you get in the ring… it can go either way,” Ngannou told Mirror Fighting.
“That’s the beauty about combat sports, it can always go either way no matter what is the difference of level. Now we have two elite fighters who are on the top of their game, so I’d say 50/50.”