Aurelia Butler

DESPITE years of talk and speculation, the heavyweight Battle of Britain between Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury has yet to happen. The rivalling pair have even signed contracts to fight in the past only for talks to break down.
Tyson Fury is yet to to fight Anthony Joshua after years of talksCredit: Getty
Joshua and Fury even once signed to fightCredit: Getty
It has left the debate raging between fans on who is not only the best heavyweight in the country, but the world.
One man in the unique position of having fought them both is Otto Wallin, who shot to attention for his 2019 bout with Fury.
He memorably left the Gypsy King needing 47 stitches and a lenient referee and doctor who allowed the action to continue.
Fury, 35, dug down and edged out a decision victory to keep his undefeated record intact.
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Fast forward four years and Wallin, 32, was named as the man to welcome AJ back to the ring in Saudi Arabia.
But Joshua, 34, gave the Swedish southpaw no chance of seeing the final bell as he dominated him over five rounds.
So Wallin – who was rightly pulled out by his corner – revealed AJ was much harder to fight compared to Fury.
He told  Boxing News: “I know that he is one of the best fighters out there.
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“I really have no excuses, he was just better. He did really well, used his reach well, and he hit me with some really good shots. He was just better.
“I think he had a good game plan. He felt like a very good fighter, and obviously, it was a much tougher fight than what I had with Tyson Fury.
“Maybe he’s found his home with Ben Davison.”
Fury beat Wallin in 2019 but only after suffering a cut that needed 47 stitchesCredit: Reuters
Joshua stopped Wallin in five dominant roundsCredit: Getty More

EDDIE HEARN has revealed the timeline for Anthony Joshua’s return following the collapse of his clash with Deontay Wilder.AJ’s £100million two-fight deal with the American went up in smoke last month after the American suffered a shock defeat to former WBO heavyweight champion Joseph Parker.
Anthony Joshua was on course to fight Deontay Wilder twice this yearCredit: REUTERS
Wilder’s shock defeat to Jospeh Parker put paid to those £100million plansCredit: GETTY
Promoter Eddie Hearn reckons AJ will be back in action in MarchCredit: Getty
The first of the duo’s back-to-back fights was set to take place in Saudi Arabia on March 9.
And a spring return to action is still very much on the cards for the Brit, even though a long-overdue showdown with Wilder isn’t.
Matchroom Boxing chief Hearn told iFL TV: “I think he’s gonna fight in March.”
Hearn is hoping Joshua can replicate the schedule he had in 2023, in which he fought three times in the space ten months.
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He continued: “Then I guess he fights in August, September, so whether it’s three times in the calendar year or three times from March to March, something like that.”
A showdown with mandatory IBF title challenger Filip Hrogovic was seemingly in the pipeline for AJ after his dispatching of Otto Wallin last month.
But Hearn admits there are currently a lot of unknowns about the clash with Croatian clubber.
He said: “A lot has to happen by March to make that possible with Hrgovic.
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“Obviously, [Tyson Fury and [Oleksandr] Usyk fight in the middle of February.
“Are they gonna be able to keep the belt? Do they have to let it go? Is Joshua just gonna replace Wallin in the rankings? There’s a lot of discussions.
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A showdown with Francis Ngannou could be in the offing for AJCredit: GETTY
“If that’s in play for March, that’s definitely a possibility. Maybe that’s a fight that, when everything plays out, could be one for the summer.
“As I said, our conversations right now are about mapping out AJ’s next four or five fights … his 2024 and potentially the rest of his career.”
One fight Hearn is open to AJ having is a crossover clash with former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou.
He said: “Right now, we have three fights that we’re in discussions for.
“They’re all big and that doesn’t involve Deontay Wilder for March. Our aim, and they’ve expressed this is to fight the winner of Fury-Usyk.
“That’s all we want to do, obviously there’s the Hrgovic fight out there for the world heavyweight title.
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“There’s a Francis Ngannou fight out there which would be absolutely colossal.
“There’s other heavyweights as well, there’s a Zhang fight possible as well with Queensberry.” More

TYSON FURY has been urged to adopt the game-plan that won him his first world titles in his bid for heavyweight immortality.The Gypsy King will bid to become the first undisputed heavyweight champion in over 25 years next month against former pound-for-pound king Oleksandr Usyk.
Tyson Fury finally throws down with Oleksandr Usyk next monthCredit: GETTY
The winner of the pair’s showdown will become undisputed heavyweight champCredit: EPA
Brit Dave Allen (right) has given The Gypsy King some pointers on how to beat the Ukrainian
A staggering 21 men have tried and failed to beat the Ukranian, who reigned supreme at cruiserweight.
None of Usyk’s opponents, however, have boasted the physical attributes of Fury, which Dave Allen believes he should use along with the tactics he deployed in his 2015 win over Wladimir Klitschko to have his hand raised.
Allen told BBTV Boxing: “If I was training Tyson Fury, I would go about it with the same tactics he used in the Klitschko fight, from experience of sparring both.
“Lots will disagree with me, but I wouldn’t advise anyone to go marching onto Oleksandr Usyk.”
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Allen reckons the speed and craftiness of Usyk could see Fury floored if he the burly Brit reckons he can bulldoze his way to victory.
He said: “Tyson’s been down the last couple of fights – you don’t want to walk on to a man with that ability and that speed.
“Start cautiously, lots of trickery, and if Usyk slows down then that size advantage in the aspect of bullying can come into play.”
Allen knows a thing or two about Usyk’s speed and power having previously sparred with the Olympic gold medallist, who stung him so badly during a spar that he had to stop the session.
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And he believes Fury could benefit by adopting a feint-heavy approach in the Riyadh rumble.
Allen said: “I spent a lot of the rounds trying to put pressure on him, bully him – it didn’t work.
“He’s a master at [dealing with that.] People have been doing that for years with him.
“I think you’ve got to frustrate him. Lots of feints, lots of movements, you’ve got to antagonise him.
“He’s not physically the strongest. He’s not the biggest puncher. This [his head] is where he wins the fights. And I believe Tyson is the only man capable of beating him at his own game.”
WBC heavyweight king Fury knows the size of the task on his hands next month but is confident of delivering an emphatic stoppage victory.
He said: “It’s going to one of the fights for the ages.
“I believe we are both destined to be here and to be in this big fight in Saudi Arabia, and there’s only one winner, and I am destined to become the undisputed champion.
“More than that, I am destined to cement my legacy as the No. 1 fighter in this era.
“To do that I have to beat this little man and that’s it, simple as.
“Easier said than done I understand, he’s a tricky man, good boxer, slick.
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“But I have seen many people like him before and when they fight the big men they struggle.
“He’s going to struggle on February 17 and he’s going to lose, I will break him for sure.”
Tyson Fury believes he’ll stop Oleksandr UsykCredit: GETTY More

ANTHONY JOSHUA’S ex-trainer said a fight with Francis Ngannou would be “easy”… and “shouldn’t even be sanctioned.” Ngannou is being touted as a potential next opponent for AJ after Deontay Wilder blew their £100million deal.
Anthony Joshua with former coach Robert GarciaCredit: Getty
Francis Ngannou is being touted to potentially fight Anthony JoshuaCredit: Reuters
Joshua had beaten Otto Wallin, 32, in Saudi Arabia but moments beforehand Wilder lost to Joseph Parker, 31.
So AJ’s super-fight with the American former heavyweight champion has been KO’d for now.
Joshua’s promoter named ex-UFC champion Ngannou along with Filip Hrgovic, 31, and Zhilei Zhang, 40, as alternatives to Wilder.
But Robert Garcia – formerly coach to AJ – slammed the idea of Ngannou facing Joshua.
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Garcia told ESNEWS: “It’s an easy fight for Joshua. Those fights shouldn’t even be sanctioned.
“Ngannou, fighting the heavyweight champion of the world, Fury, it shouldn’t have been sanctioned.
“It’s a disrespect to boxing not to train one single day for that fight. It was embarrassing.”
Ngannou, 37, put on hold his MMA career this year to fight WBC champ Tyson Fury, 35, in Saudi Arabia in October.
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He astonishingly dropped Fury only to be controversially beaten on points but his stock has risen.
So much so that he is now in the running for another huge boxing payday against Joshua, 34.
Hearn told iFL TV: “Right now, we have three fights that we’re in discussions for.
“They’re all big and that doesn’t involve Deontay Wilder for March. Our aim, and they’ve expressed this is to fight the winner of Fury-Usyk.
“That’s all we want to do, obviously there’s the Hrgovic fight out there for the world heavyweight title.
“There’s a Francis Ngannou fight out there which would be absolutely colossal.
“There’s other heavyweights as well, there’s a Zhang fight possible as well with Queensberry.” More

ANTHONY JOSHUA is being lined up with an “absolutely colossal” fight as an alternative to Deontay Wilder. AJ was set for a March 9 blockbuster against Wilder until the American blew the £100million deal by losing to Joseph Parker.
Anthony Joshua is being lined up with an ‘absolutely colossal’ as an alternative to Deontay WilderCredit: Getty
So now Joshua has to turn his attention elsewhere and Eddie Hearn wants him to fight the winner between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk.
But the promoter also named Filip Hrgovic, Zhilei Zhang and Francis Ngannou as other options.
It was ex-UFC champion Ngannou who floored Fury on his boxing debut only to controversially lose on points.
Hearn told iFL TV: “Right now, we have three fights that we’re in discussions for.
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“They’re all big and that doesn’t involve Deontay Wilder for March. Our aim, and they’ve expressed this is to fight the winner of Fury-Usyk.
“That’s all we want to do, obviously there’s the Hrgovic fight out there for the world heavyweight title.
“There’s a Francis Ngannou fight out there which would be absolutely colossal.
“There’s other heavyweights as well, there’s a Zhang fight possible as well with Queensberry.”
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Fury, 35, and Usyk, 36, are believed to have signed a two-fight deal that could produce a rematch between the pair.
And it would likely mean the winner would lose the IBF title for being unable to face mandatory challenger Hrgovic, 31.
So Joshua and Hearn are looking to capitalise by facing the Croatian for what would be a vacant title.
And Zhang, 40, is riding high off consecutive stoppage wins over Joe Joyce, 38.
But Ngannou, 37, is likely to be the most lucrative option even though he comes without a world title.
Francis Ngannou knocked down Tyson FuryCredit: Getty More