Tyson Fury and Mike Tyson Send Message to Anthony Joshua Amid Venue Controversy

Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua finally agreed to one of the biggest fights in boxing earlier this year, but there is a snag on where the fight will be hosted and Fury has posted a video message with former champion and boxing legend Mike Tyson in the hopes of giving Joshua a push to sign the dotted line.

The disagreement over where the fight should be held stems from the fact that Eddie Hearn, Joshua's promoter, claims that they have a stipulation in their contract that the fight needs to be in the UK, which was part of the reason they signed to fight Fury in the first place.

Fury has not expressed the same conviction and will fight where he is paid to fight.

In recent weeks, Madison Square Garden has emerged as the new favorite to host the era-defining heavyweight clash, but it requires both fighters to sign a new contract, which Fury has, but Joshua is resisting.

With the fight supposed to happen before the end of the year, the window for contracts to be signed and announcements and arrangements to be made is closing fast. Fury is lacking patience and has posted multiple online outbursts criticizing Joshua and Hearn for delaying the fight.

Tyson and Tyson call out AJ

In his latest post, he employed the help of Tyson: “AJ, sign the contract, big boy," Fury shouted.

Tyson then joined in: “He says you are scared. He said you’re scared. Do you hear that? Do you hear that?”

Fury continued: “He’s scared, alright, because I’m going to knock his a-- spark out 100%. Sign the contract, big boy. You're getting chinned!”

It looks as though Joshua and Hearn are fighting a losing battle against the powers that be in boxing and will inevitably have to accept the alternate location, stripping the fight away from British boxing fans and taking it to the US.

At this point, however, fans will just be happy to see an official confirmation that the event is happening, as fatigue is beginning to set in as well as doubt over the fight ever taking place after 10 years of waiting.

Is this the end for Fury and Joshua?

With both men now in their late 30s, many fans are speculating if we might see one or both Fury and Joshua retire after their fight, or a potential rematch.

Their recent performance against Mariusz Wach behind closed doors for Fury and Kristian Prenga for Joshua, have left doubts over both men's claims to being elite level heavyweights. Joshua and Fury have said that they want to have another run at a world title now that Oleksandr Usyk has cleared the path and fragmented the belts.

Daniel Dubois knocking out Anthony Joshua to retain IBF heavyweight title. | IMAGO / PA Images

But the current list of champions is a concern, as there is an argument to be made that none currently beats Daniel Dubois, Filip Hrgovic, or Agit Kabayel. The only weak link in the chain is the WBA champion Murat Gassiev, who is significantly smaller than both men and is perhaps fortunate to hold the belt in the first place, having faced no elite opposition.

If either man could get their hands on another world title, they would enter an exclusive club of greats who can claim to be a three-time heavyweight champion. The only other occupants are Muhammad Ali, Lennox Lewis, Evander Holyfield, and Michael Moorer.

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