What You Need to Know about the Long-Simmering Rivalry Between Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua

Boxing fans have long been clamoring for a matchup between Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua. The two British heavyweights have been circling each other for more than a decade, a fight repeatedly appearing to be close to materializing but never coming to fruition.

The latest chapter in the saga came in April, when following his unanimous-decision win against Arslanbek Makhmudov, Fury stood in the ring and challenged Joshua to a long-awaited clash.

"I, the Gypsy King, challenge you, Anthony Joshua, to fight me next,” he bellowed into the microphone in front of 60,000 fans at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London. “Do you accept the challenge?”

Joshua, who was sitting ringside, refused to take the bait, calling Fury a “clout-chaser” and telling the Gypsy King “You ain’t gonna tell me what to do.” Joshua continued: “When you’re ready, you come and see me, and tell me your terms and conditions, and I’ll have you in the ring when I’m ready.”

Despite the anticlimax, momentum for Fury–Joshua has continued to build. Netflix announced the matchup would take place in the fall, and both Fury’s and Joshua’s camps have said the fight is already a “done deal.” Both men have made clear they would take warm-up bouts, with Joshua squaring off with lightly regarded Kristian Prenga in July and Fury planning a return bout for August 1.

Should each man win as expected, boxing fans may finally get their wish of seeing Fury and Joshua square off. Ahead of the potential bout, let’s look back at the longstanding rivalry between the two British heavyweights.

A Rivalry Is Born

Although they’ve never had an official bout, Fury and Joshua did actually step into the ring together once before. In June 2010, years before they became world champions, a 21-year-old Fury and a 20-year old Joshua sparred for three rounds at Finchley Amateur Boxing Club in London.

Joshua, who was then an amateur trying to qualify for the 2012 Olympics, claims to have gotten the better of Fury, who at the time was 10-0 as a professional.

"Tyson, I beat you up when we were kids,” Joshua said after Fury challenged him following the Makhmudov fight. “And after seeing you tonight, I will beat you up again, easily."

Champions Eyeing Each Other

Following his gold medal at the Olympics, Joshua turned professional in 2013 and claimed a minor belt the following year. It was during this time he began calling out Fury, telling ESPN in 2015, “One hundred percent I think me and Tyson could fight next year.”

Joshua’s comments came just before Fury shocked the boxing world by handing longtime champion Wladimir Klitschko his first loss in more than 10 years. The victory was a defining moment for the Gypsy King, but he would not fight again for more than two a half years, a period in which he tested positive for steroids and battled mental health issues.

During Fury’s absence from the sport, Joshua became IBF champion and continued to agitate for a fight with his British rival. Standing in the ring following his own victory over Klitschko in April 2017, Joshua taunted Fury in front of 90,000 fans at Wembley Stadium, asking, “Fury, where you at, baby?"

Fury responded via social media, writing, "Challenge accepted. We will give the world the biggest fight in 500 years.”

Setbacks

Fury returned to boxing in June 2018 and racked up a pair of wins before signing on to a marquee bout with a heavyweight champion. But that opponent wouldn’t be Joshua; it would be Deontay Wilder, an American who held the WBC belt.

Fury and Wilder fought to a draw in their first bout that December, and Fury won a match against Tom Schwarz the following June to become WBO Inter-Continental heavyweight champion. Joshua, meanwhile, suffered a shocking loss to Andy Ruiz Jr. that same month, but he later avenged the defeat with a wide decision victory over Ruiz in December 2019.

With both boxers coming off wins, holding major championship belts, and in their primes, the stage finally seemed set for the much-anticipated clash. Fury’s and Joshua’s managers said an agreement for the two boxers to fight twice in 2021 was nearly done. Then an arbitration judge ruled that Fury was contractually obligated to a third fight with Wilder. The matchup would Joshua would have to wait.

Failed Negotiations

As Fury prepared to take on Wilder, Joshua turned his attention to Oleksandr Usyk, a former cruiserweight champion who was making noise at heavyweight. The two men squared off in September 2021, with Usyk ultimately outpointing Joshua. Fury disparaged Joshua in the media, and after he knocked out Wilder in October to complete his trilogy with the American, he cast doubt on a fight with Joshua ever happening, saying “The bubble has been burst.”

Although Joshua would lose again to Usyk in an August 2022 rematch, promoters continued to try to make the fight between the two Brits happen. In September, Joshua accepted an offer from Fury to square off in December, but later that month Fury called off the bout when he claimed Joshua failed to meet a contract-signing deadline. “It’s officially over for Joshua,” Fury said as the prospects of the fight once again evaporated.

Hopes Revived

For two years, it seemed as if any chance of Fury–Joshua happening was gone forever, but in September 2024 Joshua’s manager said he expected the fight to finally occur after each boxer’s next bout. Fury and Joshua, however, each lost those respective bouts, with Joshua falling in a shocking fifth-round knockout to Daniel Dubois. Fury subsequently came up short to Usyk in December, then retired from the sport, seemingly putting an end to the possibility of a matchup with Joshua.

During Fury’s retirement, Joshua scored a knockout over YouTube personality Jake Paul. Five months later, Fury returned to boxing with his April win over Makhmudov. With Joshua seemingly ready to resume his career after a tragic car crash that killed two of his friends last December, the moment may finally have arrived for Fury and Joshua to settle their long-simmering feud. Boxing fans—particularly British ones—can’t wait.