Eddie Hearn hopes a resolution can be found to ensure that Anthony Joshua faces Tyson Fury on August 14, but would like to know by the end of the week whether to move on to a Plan B.
Unified WBA ‘Super’, WBO, IBF and IBO Heavyweight world champion, Joshua and WBC king, Fury appeared on the brink of sealing an undisputed title clash in Saudi Arabia this summer, reportedly worth up to $150m, after the latter posted a video on social media on Sunday to announce the fight having spoken with a Prince in the region.
However, Deontay Wilder claimed victory in an arbitration case on Monday and has been awarded a third fight with the ‘Gypsy King’, potentially scuppering a proposed showdown between the British pair.
Wilder, who was dethroned in seven rounds by Fury in their rematch in Las Vegas in February 2020, following a disputed draw in their first meeting in Los Angeles in December 2018 exercised his right to a trilogy, although after various postponements Fury’s team insisted that the timeframe had passed.
The 35-year-old’s team took their case to mediation, followed by binding arbitration with retired judge David Weinstein ruling that a third fight must take place before September 15 2021.
Fury’s US Promoter Bob Arum told ESPN on Monday that ‘The Bronze Bomber’ would not be paid to step aside and revealed that the Allegiant Stadium – home of the Las Vegas Raiders – had been reserved for July 24.
Hearn, who has promoted Joshua since he turned professional after winning Olympic Gold in London in 2012, hopes that his charge can meet his rival on August 14.
“I hope it does [happen on August 14],” Hearn told Matchroom Boxing’s YouTube channel.
“Because like I said we’ve grafted away for four or five months to make this happen.
“We’ve got a fantastic deal in place for both fighters for a legacy fight, for a huge amount of money, the undisputed world championship it’s what both guys wanted.
“I hope, but hopeful? I don’t know. As I said everything that we were told from the get go is this arbitration issue wouldn’t be a problem, obviously it is a problem now and we have to think on our feet and we have to act accordingly.
“But, we still hope that the fight can go ahead, but really that’s completely out of our hands.”
Hearn holds talks with Usyk’s team
Should Joshua and Fury not meet in the summer, a clash with Oleksandr Usyk appears possible and Hearn has had conversations with the Ukranian’s Promoter, Alex Krassyuk on Tuesday.
Usyk cemented his position as WBO mandatory challenger to Joshua with victory over Derek Chisora in October, but the governing body reportedly cooled their demands in January to allow AJ and Fury to seal a highly-anticipated showdown.
“We want to win the undisputed championship, we want to fight Tyson Fury,” Hearn added.
“But really if his hands are tied, we have to look elsewhere.
“I have been focusing on Plan A, the only fight that we had our mind on was Tyson Fury and we hope that fight can still take place on August 14.
“The game changed last night where we have to have a Plan B in place and probably a Plan C as well and we have a couple of different options.
“Of course, the one that springs to mind immediately is the WBO mandatory of Oleksandr Usyk.”
The Matchroom Boxing Chairman has set a deadline of the end of the week for a resolution either way, with Joshua keen to box in the summer having not fought since a ninth round stoppage win over IBF mandatory, Kubrat Pulev in December.
“We hope that they [Fury’s co-promoters, Top Rank] can solve that problem.
🗣️ “We were told by Fury’s team the arbitration wouldn’t be an issue. Let’s see if they can pull something out the bag for their fighter. We have to look after AJ” – @EddieHearn exclusive out now
Watch in full ⬇️https://t.co/7zXFOlrrJL pic.twitter.com/aVC9iT4BC5
— Matchroom Boxing (@MatchroomBoxing) May 18, 2021
“But we have to look after ourselves, we have to look after Anthony Joshua, we have to maintain the position of unified world champion and those talks will continue and we want to be in a position by the end of this week to know are we fighting Tyson Fury or are we moving forward with another option?
“Lets see if team Fury can pull something positive out of the bag for their fighter.”
