IT’S the fight that all boxing fans want to see – and it might be with us after all.
Despite losing to Oleksandr Usyk in his rematch, Anthony Joshua has sensationally been offered the opportunity to fight Tyson Fury by the Gypsy King himself in December.
Fury took to social media and said: “I think you’ve all heard I’m going to be fighting soon, in the next few months. I think before I announce an opponent, I need to do this just in case.
“Anthony Joshua, I know you’ve just lost a fight to Usyk and you’re boutless at the moment.
“I’d like to give you an opportunity to fight me for the WBC heavyweight championship of the world and the lineal championship in the next few months. You’re coming off a 12-round fight so you’re match fit, you’re ready.
“I’m giving you a few months’ notice. If you’re interested, I’ll send you a date over and we can rumble. A battle of Britain for the WBC championship of the world; if you’re not interested, let me know and I’ll select another opponent.”
Seeing Fury’s call out – AJ posted his reply on Twitter. He wrote: “Yea calm. I don’t do the online discussions just for clout, so if you really about it shout 258 Management. I’ll be ready in December.”
Outside the ring, Joshua and Fury are contrasting personalities that live fairly modest lives.
Joshua, who has amassed a reported £107million fortune, lives in a North London home with his mum.
While Fury, believed to have been worth around £30million prior to his last fight, has a base in Morecambe and plenty of impressive motors. But how do they compare?
After suffering with depression, Tyson decided it was best to scale down his lifestyle. He did own a Rolls Royce Phantom, worth around £360k, but decided to sell that when he hit an all-time low.
Instead, he bought himself a 15-year-old Mercedes S-Class for £2,000. A shrewd investment from the big man.
He did own a £160k Ferrari California, before he sold it to one of his friends.
And Fury has also been seen around town in a £150,000 camo-wrapped Range Rover.
“I used to love leading the flash life, like most red-blooded young men,” Tyson admitted. “No longer. I’m not interested in material possessions. Not any more. They mean nothing.”
However, he has slightly contradicted himself at times.
Tyson splashed around £300,000 on a Ferrari GTC supercar. While he also has a Land Rover Defender worth around £38,000, that he takes great joy in keeping clean.
After beating Dillian Whyte at Wembley, Fury splashed out on more motors.
He added a £250,000 Rolls-Royce Cullinan to his fleet, as well as a £250,000 Porsche Taycan.
Meanwhile, Anthony did have his very own bespoke Range Rover – the SVAutobiography-Dynamic through a sponsorship deal with Jaguar.
Worth around £150k, the vehicle is so elaborate diamonds are stitched into the seating. There’s also a huge sports equipment storage unit in the boot for trophies, gloves, pads and a punchbag.
AJ’s signature is marked on a chrome B-pillar badge, while the door handles are engraved with boxing gloves.
Showmanship is taken to the next level with Anthony’s signature on aluminium letterbox finishers on door cards. It’s certainly AJ’s pride and joy because he’s always happy to be snapped with his motor on Instagram,
However, weeks before a title fight it was stolen by thieves as he trained for the world heavyweight title fight. Still, he had it replaced with a new model.
Sun scorecard calls round 1: Joshua 9 Fury 10
THE JEWELS
Although he’s a bit more frugal than your average boxer when it comes to jewellery, Anthony does own a £350k watch. Custom-designed for the 6ft 6in superstar by Audemars Piguet, it’s made of gold and studded with diamonds.
In the past, Joshua has spoken before about how it’s the most lavish thing he owns.
As for Tyson, we’ve seen him show off his taste in bizarre high-end fashion but he doesn’t tend to overly accessorise at all. However, he does have a vintage Rolex wrapped around his wrist that he still wears.
When Anthony and Tyson sparred against each other in their amateur days, AJ revealed that Tyson offered anyone who could knock him out that same watch.
“I didn’t even know who he was because I wasn’t a boxing fan at all,” Anthony said back in 2015.
“I just heard this big guy from Manchester had said that anyone who knocks him out can have his Rolex. “He said it in the Boxing News. So my coach said ‘if you want that Rolex, take it to him’ – so I went to war.
“It wasn’t technical – he was holding on with one hand and trying to hit with the other, low blowing me and all sorts.
“I’ll remind him of that promise. If we fight down the line I want the watch on the line again. I’ve only got a rubber G-Shock now and I want that Rolly.”
Sun scorecard calls round 2: Joshua 10 Fury 9
HOMES
He may be worth a mint, but Anthony doesn’t have a flash home. Instead, he bought his mum, Yeta Odusanya her council flat in north London for a mere £185,000 in 2013.
AJ did spend a portion of his hard-earned winnings on a rented property in a north London mansion while he was training for the Wladimir Klitschko fight.
According to a report, the mansion near Lord’s Cricket Ground was worth £27 million. It belonged to South African diamond trader Walter Hennig, and cost AJ around £20,000 per month.
Needless to say, after the fight was done AJ reportedly moved back into his mum’s council flat once again. And when he trained in the UK, he retreated to a humble two-bedroom flat in Sheffield he once showed off on YouTube.
Not one to forget his gypsy roots, Tyson restored his 1958 Westmorland Star caravan. But he upgraded his £550,000 Morecambe to a more stellar £1.7million mansion down the road.
He’s the celebrity of the area, regularly spotted running along the sea front, and he even threatened to run as an MP for Morecambe in 2015. During lockdown, Fury and his wife Paris staged their own workouts for fans live on Instagram. Tyson once said: “Whatever happens I won’t end up one of those boxers whose 20-room mansion gets repossessed and suddenly discovers his friends were just hangers-on who were sucking him dry.”
Sun scorecard calls round 3: Joshua 8 Fury 10
CLOTHES
Often seen modelling their gear on his Instagram, AJ has a huge sponsorship deal with Under Armour, who are second only to Nike when it comes to shifting sportswear.
He was first seen wearing the brand in the ring before fighting Eric Molina in 2016, alongside footballer Memphis Depay.
AJ said: “It is a partnership that has been incredibly successful to date, the brand has helped me increase performance with custom products and new technologies.”
Out of the ring, Anthony can often be seen looking suited and booted at award ceremonies, but given his focus on training he isn’t out much. He’s also sponsored by Lynx, so he’ll always stay fresh in the ring. This is why the British heavyweight champ is tipped to become the first billionaire boxer.
Tyson, on the other hand, went full out when he became heavyweight champion.
Before he was stripped of his belt after testing positive for drugs, Tyson flaunted his new-found wealth in some choice gear.
One particular chinchilla fur coat looked straight off the set of Boogie Nights, and it set Fury back a cool £9,000. He’s possibly the only man who could pull it off, and we’re not going to argue with him either.
The gentle giant also tried out a Louis Vuitton man-bag, and again who are we to argue that he didn’t pull it off. While ahead of a big fight, Fury always make sure he looks spot-on for a press conference. He’s taken to wearing elaborate bespoke suits by tailor Nav Salimian – some that even feature his own image.
Sun scorecard calls round 4: Joshua 10 Fury 9
WAGS
Being the consummate professional is important to AJ. That’s why he regularly says he doesn’t have time for girlfriends and is currently single.
Although that didn’t stop him getting a lot of attention from the ladies at Encore Beach Club in Las Vegas one time in 2016.
His ex was pole dancer, Nicole Osbourne and they have one son together called Joshua.
In an interview in 2017, Joshua outlined his relationship plans. “My time training means there is not much time for girlfriends,” he revealed.
“If people can ride with me for the next 10 to 12 years I would really appreciate it, but if they can’t foresee the future I’d rather they jump off the boat because I can’t stop for no one right now.”
As for Tyson, he’s been with his childhood sweetheart Paris since they were both 15-years-old when they met at a mutual friend’s wedding. They have six children and Tyson has revealed he would love to have 10 kids.
Sun scorecard card calls round 5: Joshua 9 Fury 10
CHARITY
Both Joshua and Fury do their bit for charity. Alongside StubHub, Joshua helped raise £10,000 for the Key4Life in 2019. And in 2018, he began working with anti-knife charity Steel Warriors to help tackle knife crime in London.
“I like to give, for sure, to help people. That’s important. I want to invest because I like business,” he once revealed.
In 2018, it was reported that Tyson donated his entire purse (£7million) to a charity helping the homeless and needy.
He is an ambassador for the Frank Bruno Foundation, an organisation that exists to provide a safe environment with the aim to improve the mental wellbeing of participants who are facing or recovering from mental ill health.
Fury also sold Gypsy King branded coronavirus masks for £12.99, donating the profits to the NHS.
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
