Anthony Joshua’s promoter, Eddie Hearn, is confident that the British-Nigerian and Tyson Fury would easily earn at least £100m each from fighting one other as the heavyweights could meet in the ring later this year or in 2025, PRIMANEWS Sports Extra reports.
First, Fury faces unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk in Saudi Arabia on May 18 for the undisputed heavyweight championship. Delayed from 17 February due to a cut Fury sustained during training camp, it is due to be the first of a two-fight deal agreed in November last year.
Coming through both of those bouts unbeaten would set the stage for a much-anticipated meeting with Joshua. In the meantime, the two-time champion will seemingly be fighting the winner of Daniel Dubois versus Filip Hrgovic, scheduled for 1 June, later this year.
That bout would likely be for the IBF title, with the winner of Fury vs Usyk expected to vacate that belt before the planned rematch but that fight will come nowhere near earning Joshua as much as finally facing Fury would.
“You are talking north of £100 million, for each guy,” Hearn told Piers Morgan Uncensored. Asked by Morgan if that would make it the richest fight ever, the promoter repeated, “Ever. The biggest fight ever.”
Hearn then expanded on how much Matchroom stands to make saying, “We would do alright. We take a percentage off Anthony Joshua.”
After suggesting that they would receive 20 per cent, Hearn later acknowledged the cut would be around 10 per cent. That scenario would leave Joshua making at least £90m from the fight.
Joshua’s promoter also offered a hint about when the fight could happen.
“If Tyson Fury beats Usyk in that first fight, the whole world is going to say, ‘Please don’t do the second fight,’” he said.
Fury has also previously acknowledged not wanting a rematch clause in the contract.
“We had this big argument this year, I don’t know if you remember when I said ‘no rematch clauses’, but (Usyk) was acting like a little b**ch crying over a rematch,” Fury told the DAZN Boxing Show in the build-up to Joshua’s fight against Francis Ngannou.
“He didn’t want to just throw it down, and whoever won, won, so he ends up getting his rematch clause. There’ll be two fights this year (between) me and Usyk, regardless of whatever happens in the first one.”
Speaking on The Jonathan Ross Show last weekend, Joshua also showed a willingness to wait for the fight saying, “I think what they’re saying is be patient because you’ve got Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk for all the belts, and then once that’s done hopefully I can kick down the door and get my opportunity.”
