The war of words between Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua has added another chapter as the wait for their eagerly-anticipated fight stretches on.
The two British heavyweights have long been lined up to face each other but after countless times when confirmation of a meeting was expected, there remains an impasse.
The expectation was that the duo would finally meet this November and end their feud, which stretches back more than 15 years. The disagreement is reportedly over the venue where the fight would be staged.
Joshua and his Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn have signed a contract for the fight to take place in the UK, although it’s understood the fight organisers would prefer it to be held in the United States.
Amid the ongoing wait, Fury has now offered up his opinion and described his would-be opponent as a “coward”.
Fury, addressing Joshua directly, said: “I’ve been down to fight at every location that’s been mentioned – England, Ireland, Vegas, New York, back to England, back to Ireland, back to New York. Listen, I’ve said yep, yep, yep, yep, yep, every single time. Zero stipulations.
“The facts are I feel like you’re being a coward. I feel like you don’t want the fight and you’re just conning everybody. I feel like you’ve been doing that for years.
“You’ve had many opportunities to fight me, but deep down you’ve never really wanted it, so let’s see if you’re going to man up for a final time.”
Sela, the Saudi state-owned promotional company financing the fight, is believed to want the fight staged in the States so they can take advantage of a bigger American audience and stream it on Netflix. Hearn and Joshua’s preference is seemingly Wembley Stadium.
Fury’s promoter Frank Warren also waded in to the latest exchange, stating: “It is signed by Tyson. Tyson is signed up for the fight and agreed for the fight. He’s signed for it. 100 per cent. We’re just waiting for AJ. I can’t speak for him, he’s with Matchroom.”
Speaking recently about the fight, Hearn says his camp’s terms are not “unreasonable” as they go back to the negotiating table.
Hearn said: “We will need to make a decision this week. They’ve replied. They have our terms. It’s up to them. I mean, we don’t want to do the fight in the US, but if they really want it in the US, these are our terms.
“There’s nothing unreasonable in there, to be honest with you. There’s not one of those terms that was mentioned in the leaked email that is in the addendum. They’re all stuff related to the fight. If they want it there, they’ll sign it. If not, we’ll be very happy, and we’ll do it in the UK.”
