TICKETS for Anthony Joshua’s rematch against Andy Ruiz Jr has thought to have only sold around 75 per cent, with just over 11,000 fans expected at the arena in Saudi Arabia.
The two heavyweight giants step back into the ring on December 7 in a Diriyah showdown dubbed the Clash on the Dunes.
AJ, who lost his four title belts to the American-born Mexican in an extraordinary bout back in June, landed in the Arab country on Sunday.
And the Brit has already visited the stunning newly built 15,000 desert stadium in Diriyah with work only beginning less than two months ago.
The clash is taking place 3,900 miles away from Joshua’s London base, meaning fans have been forced to splash out as much as £15,000 to watch the Olympic Gold Medallist in action.
Yet according to the Times, about 4,000 Britons are expected to flood the outskirts of Riyadh with 75 per cent of the tickets for the 15,000-seat arena sold.
Despite that, Eddie Hearn has claimed AJ could fight both Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder in Saudi Arabia if he reclaims the WBA, WBO, IBF and IBO heavyweight world titles.
He said: “You’re going to be regularly coming out here for boxing. They want to make Saudi the home of boxing.
“That’s their plan and I know the fights they are looking at for next year. Since we’ve done this deal, everybody’s been on it.
“I believe Wilder and Tyson Fury had discussions about having their rematch here. But the one they really want is AJ against Wilder.”
SunSport reported how AJ could bank a staggering £66m from Saturday’s scrap, with the champ Ruiz Jr pocketing £10m.
And Hearn believes the main event could smash the UK pay-per-view record.
This is currently held by Joshua’s 11th-round stoppage win against Wladimir Klitschko back in 2017, amassing 1.5m PPVs.
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
