Tyson Fury has cast fresh doubt over his long-awaited showdown with Anthony Joshua, claiming the heavyweight super-fight could collapse just days after it was officially announced.
In a series of videos posted overnight, Fury accused Joshua and promoter Eddie Hearn of trying to walk away from the December 11 date at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium, blaming Hearn’s “massive ego” for the turmoil.
At the centre of the dispute is the role of UFC chief Dana White. A Netflix announcement this week named White as co-promoter of the event alongside Saudi boxing powerbroker Turki Alalshikh — but Hearn insists White will have no part in it, branding him a “silly” loser and vowing to remind the streaming giant of its contractual obligations.
White has refused to back down, telling Sky Sports he is “going to be involved in the promotion” of the fight. “Who’s going to stop me?” he said. Fury, for his part, revealed he deliberately stripped out a clause in his own contract that would have barred White’s TKO organisation, telling FurociTV: “I took it out so he could be involved. I want him involved.”
The row has thrown next week’s scheduled London press conference into serious doubt, with Ring Magazine’s Mike Coppinger reporting the bout itself could be called off. Terence Crawford and Ryan Garcia have even been mentioned as possible replacement opponents for Fury.
London was among the locations explored before Cardiff’s Principality Stadium was confirmed for the December 11 date, and Wembley Stadium remains the capital’s most iconic big-fight venue. The launch press conference had been due in London next week as the capital’s packed events calendar rolls into autumn.
Fury, who predicts he will stop Joshua “inside six or seven rounds”, described fighting in Wales as a homecoming given his family’s roots there — though he also admitted he views Joshua as a “stepping stone” to a trilogy clash with Oleksandr Usyk.
Whether the London press conference goes ahead as planned should become clear in the coming days.
