Heavyweight boxing

ANTHONY JOSHUA is ready for a Tyson Fury super-fight in the summer if talks to unify the division collapse. Fury and Usyk are closing in on a deal for the heavyweight division’s first ever four-belt undisputed title decider.
Anthony Joshua ahead of his return fightCredit: Richard Pelham / The Sun
Tyson Fury is still in talks to fight Oleksandr UsykCredit: REUTERS
The historic unification now looks set to land at Wembley instead of Saudi Arabia.
But a UK bout will mean the pound-for-pound stars taking a pay cut due to the inflated sums on offer in the Middle East.
Promoter Eddie Hearn remains sceptical on whether terms can be agreed between Fury, 34, and Usyk, 36.
And he claimed Joshua, 33, will be ready to capitalise if he beats Jermaine Franklin, 29, in his April 1 return.
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Hearn told iFL TV: “I don’t know what’s gonna happen with this Usyk thing. He may fight Fury next.
“We’d be open to that fight. If Usyk doesn’t fight Fury, AJ will fight Fury next, in the summer if he gets through Franklin.
“How about that? Stick that in your pipe and smoke it. He will.”
Joshua has lost twice to Usyk on the spin, surrendering the WBA, IBF and WBO belts.
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But he returns in a bid to boost his confidence against Franklin, the American beaten by Dillian Whyte, 34, in November.
Meanwhile, April 29 in London is the target date for Fury to unify the belts against Usyk.
But Hearn warned not to rule out AJ finally fighting his great rival, believing it is bigger than the undisputed bout.
Hearn added: “I have no idea whether Fury-Usyk is going to happen or not. I can give you my opinion.
“But I’m telling you, if that fight doesn’t happen, we will take the Fury fight.
“He will take that fight, he will take the [Deontay] Wilder fight, he’ll take them all.
“But don’t be surprised to see that fight in the summer if the other one doesn’t happen because that’s much bigger than the Usyk fight. Much bigger.
“So, just something I’ve been thinking about lately. Might be a little tinkle to George Warren. But we’ll see.”
Anthony Joshua with promoter Eddie HearnCredit: PA More

ANTHONY JOSHUA is running from the truth by changing his coaches, claims his next opponent Jermaine Franklin.The 33-year-old launches his comeback against American Franklin, 29, on April 1 — with Texan trainer Derrick James now in his corner.
Anthony Joshua has been accused of not taking blame for lossesCredit: Mark Robinson Matchroom Boxing
Jermaine Franklin thinks that AJ should stick by a coachCredit: Mark Robinson Matchroom Boxing
Rob McCracken was axed after ten years following AJ’s first defeat by Oleksandr Usyk.
Replacement Robert Garcia went after the rematch loss with the Ukrainian.
Fellow coach Angel Fernandez also got the boot from the Brit’s team after just four bouts.
Franklin said: “Maybe he’s just trying to find the trainer that he’s most comfortable with.
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“But I feel like you and your trainer should have a real solid relationship — win, lose or draw.
“Early on when you’re with these people, they don’t get paid, they’ve been with you for years, they know you inside and out.
“Your relationship might get a little shaky but it’s up to you how you fix it and bring it together.
“If you’re not liking some stuff your coach is doing, you should be able to talk to him and tell him, ‘I need you to do this and this’.
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“If you can’t reconcile, that’s OK, this is business. It’s OK to go and get another coach but I would at least try to fix what’s going on first.
“Every time you lose might not be your trainer’s fault, it could be you. I don’t blame the trainer. This is the third trainer he’s had in three fights.
“At what point do you start blaming yourself and not the trainer?
“It can’t be every trainer. Not every trainer can be making you lose.”
Joshua was stunned by a stoppage loss to Andy Ruiz Jr in 2019.
He reclaimed his WBA, IBF and WBO world titles six months later with a cautious points win compared to his usual seek-and-destroy style.
Watford ace AJ has been trapped between those two modes in the three bouts since — a Kubrat Pulev KO and the back-to-back Usyk points losses.
Credit: SUNSPORT
🥊 Anthony Joshua vs Jermaine Franklin – Date, live stream, TV channel and all you need to know about heavyweight bout
And Franklin fancies his chances at exploiting any confusion when they meet at London’s O2.
He added: “I feel like it’s a big opportunity for me, not because of him changing trainer but because of the other s**t we’ve seen.
“Like footwork — the Usyk fights surprised me a little bit. It was a  different AJ as a fighter. I’ve been watching that, studying that.
“Footwork of his is a big thing.  I don’t think people see it because he’s such a bully and dominating that they don’t see some of the mistakes he makes with his feet.
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“I’m used to seeing AJ like a raging bull. Even though he’s not overly aggressive, he’s dominant.
“But in the Usyk fights, it was weird to see this little guy pot-shotting him.” More

BOXING promoter Frank Warren has given a major update on Tyson Fury’s undisputed title fight against Oleksandr Usyk.That’s after reports claimed the Gypsy King was lining up a FOURTH bout against Deontay Wilder instead.
Frank Warren has given an update on Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr UsykCredit: Reuters
The camps have been in talks over a fight since DecemberCredit: EPA
Fury, 34, is desperate to fight on April 29 after seeing Anthony Joshua secure a home clash against Jermaine Franklin earlier in the month.
But despite being in talks with Usyk’s camp since December, there is yet to be an agreement for a fight with the Ukrainian.
And reports on Monday claimed Fury was exploring a possible fourth fight against American foe Wilder as an alternative.
World Boxing News says the rivals have already held secret talks over a battle at Wembley Stadium.
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And promoter Warren has now intervened to provide an update on Fury’s next opponent.
He insists the WBC king is not thinking about Wilder and is fully focused on fighting Usyk next.
Warren is adamant that an agreement is close after Usyk’s promoter Alex Krassyuk flew to the UK for crunch talks.
And he hopes treating Krassyuk to tickets for Arsenal vs Man City will help seal a deal on Wednesday.
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Warren told TalkSport: “[Fury talks with Wilder?] Not to my knowledge at all, not to my knowledge. No, absolutely. That’s not happened.
“From what I understand, I think he [Wilder] been ordered to fight Andy Ruiz to become the mandatory.
“We are very, very close to getting this [Fury vs Usyk] done. Very, very close.
“His people are coming in tomorrow and I’m hoping we’re gonna get some news for everybody. We’re close to getting it done.
“Tomorrow we’re gonna meet up. Alex Krassyuk, his promoter, is coming to the Arsenal vs Man City game with me.
“I’m hoping that if I can get enough wine down him that we can do the deal.
“We’re meeting him to get an agreement on the various scenarios to make it happen.
“There’s a few more hurdles for both sides to get over. They’re not [insurmountable], not at all. Location is the main thing.
“If we go abroad, then you go there for a premium, that’s the reason you do it.
“If not, then we get down to the reality of what it’ll be at Wembley where the numbers are what they are.
“We broke the box office record with the fight vs Dillian Whyte last April. If we get this one on, I think that will break that record.
“I think it’s well in excess of a million [UK PPV] buys, one-and-a-half million.

“It’s not like we’ve got to go and sell Usyk, he’s beaten Anthony Joshua twice, the public know who he is. It’s not a tough sell at all.
“We’ve got a pencil on it [April 29] for obvious reasons, just in case, we’ve gotta make sure we’ve got some insurance. So there’s a pencil on the date.
“In a perverse way I would like to see it at Wembley because I’d like to see all the records broken and obviously see the fight in the UK.
“But from the boxers and their bank managers’ point of view, they would like to maximise what they can earn for an historic fight.
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“The situation is it’s got to be dealt with this week because otherwise it just won’t happen.
“That would be bad for boxing and bad for everybody in the sport if we don’t make it happen.” More

JAKE PAUL and Tommy Fury are set to bank mega-money paydays for their dust-up in the Diriyah desert. The pair have once more rescheduled their grudge match after Fury was twice forced to pull out amid injury and visa issues.
Jake Paul and Tommy Fury facing offCredit: GETTY
But their third crack at settling the score could be the most lucrative of all having taken their feud to Saudi Arabia on February 26.
The fight is set to be televised on pay-per-view worldwide, with BT Box Office carrying the UK rights and ESPN in America.
According to SportsZion, Paul is guaranteed to make at least $3.2million (£2.6m) and then 65 per cent of PPV sales.
It is claimed it could take his earnings for the fight to over $8.6m (£7m) including sponsorship deals.
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For Fury, 23, the report states he will take home at least $2m (£1.6m) while taking home the remaining 35 per cent of box office sales.
That would see him take home up to $4.5m (£3.6m) when it is all said and done.
Fury raised concerns after he no-showed for the kick-off press conference in Saudi Arabia.
Paul, 26, made the short journey from Dubai – where he has been training – to show up and promote the PPV.
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And he used Fury’s absence to blast his celebrity boxing rival following their history of failed fights.
He said: “He’s gonna have to pay for all the times he pulled out, all the business people he screwed over. It’s disrespectful.
“There are some of the biggest names in boxing, some of the biggest promoters in the world, some of the most influential people in the world, one of the greatest countries in the world, and he doesn’t want to show up ’cause a “private matter” – cool. We all have private matters.”
Jake Paul and Tommy Fury fight ahead of their February 26 fightCredit: Reuters More