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Tyson Fury has dismissed the possibility that he and Anthony Joshua will ever resolve their long-running feud, labeling his fellow Brit a "coward." Fury and Joshua's teams were on the verge of arranging a last-minute fight for December 3, but when those talks fell through, the world heavyweight champion instead chose to face Derek Chisora.
Last year, and briefly again a few weeks ago, the world heavyweight champion appeared to be on a collision course with Joshua, but their paths have never crossed in the ring. They agreed to meet on August 14 in Saudi Arabia last year, but Fury was eventually ordered to face Deontay Wilder for the third time, and talks for a new meeting this year fell through.
And Fury has since called Joshua a "coward" in a number of interviews, most recently in an interview with the Queensberry Promotions YouTube channel. He instead chose to fight Derek Chisora on December 3rd after missing out on another fight with the two-time champion, and he
"No, there's no glamour in fighting a coward, none,” Fury said. "I don't fight cowards; I only fight real men. So, to say that's a glamour fight? No way. My glamour fight was fighting the 43-0 Deontay Wilder in America [he was 40-0 when they first fought, 42-0-1 the second time and 42-1-1 the third]. That was my glamour fight.
"The first time two heavyweight champions have fought each other while being undefeated since Ali fought Frazier the first time. That’s my glamour fight. This other bum fight over here with Joshua was a bit like a Sunday roast, people over here only respect it in England and Usyk will be a walk in the park, I’ll butcher him."
Last year's fight between Joshua and Fury would have been for the undisputed title, with the winner becoming the first person to hold every heavyweight belt since 2000. Nobody has ever done it in the four-belt era, with Lennox Lewis being the last to do it around the turn of the millennium.
When the fight was called off, Joshua's team was unable to avoid the WBO's mandatory challenger Oleksandr Usyk, who snatched his belts from him at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium that September. They were able to get him a contractually required immediate rematch, which he also won.
Fury is expected to face his fellow champion early next year, with all of the titles on the line. The only stumbling block appears to be the IBF's decision to force Usyk to face mandatory challenger Filip Hrgovic, but a deal could be reached to allow the undisputed clash to take place.