Eddie Hearn has explained that Anthony Joshua agreed to a fight with Tyson Fury as he feels it could be his last opportunity to face him, Eoin Harte writes for PA Pundit Arena.
Joshua isn’t coming into the proposed fight in the greatest form, as he has lost his last two bouts against Oleksandr Usyk, while Fury remains undefeated in his professional career.
Nonetheless, Joshua agreed to a 60/40 purse split and a date of December 3rd, with broadcasters, understood to be the final hurdle to clear before the fight can officially be announced.
Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn was speaking to Sky Sports and explained that Joshua believes this could be his one chance to fight his fellow British heavyweight.
Eddie Hearn on Anthony Joshua.
“He thinks, ‘This is my only chance because if he fights Usyk, win or lose I think he’ll retire.’ Or you never know with Fury, he could just never fight again,” Hearn explained.
“The reason he accepts these terms is he feels this is the only chance he’ll get to fight Tyson Fury. So, therefore, okay, it would have been better to come off a victory but we’re here and [Joshua thinks], ‘I can beat him and I feel good.’
“When he drew to [Deontay] Wilder, we offered Fury the fight against AJ and we offered him 60-40 and he said no and he said I’ll only take 50-50. That’s one of the reasons I wanted to push back on some of the terms.
Can AJ turn his fortunes around?
Joshua is already back in training camp after agreeing to Fury’s terms, although while he may be in peak physical condition, it may prove harder to pick himself up mentally.
The former world heavyweight champion was clearly emotional after his second consecutive loss to Usyk, and although he improved significantly on his performance from the pair’s first fight, it wasn’t enough in the end.
