It was always going to be a super-fight. Two undefeated heavyweight world champions, with a combined record of 41-0, going head-to-head to unify the belts and become the undisputed king of the division.
But after months of negotiations, and with both sides seemingly unable to agree on key financial details, the much-anticipated bout between Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua appears to have fallen apart.
That’s not to say that the fight is completely off–both camps are still in talks and there is a possibility that they could come to an agreement—but at the moment, it looks like the fight will not be happening.
So what went wrong?
The main sticking point is the split of the purse. Joshua’s team are reportedly demanding a 60-40 split in their favour, while Fury’s camp are holding out for a 50-50 deal. With both sides so far apart on this key issue, it’s unlikely that they will agree.
Of course, there are other factors at play here too. Joshua has a contract with streaming service DAZN, which complicates matters, while Fury is still aligned with boxing promoter Bob Arum.
But this is a fight that the boxing world wants to see, and it’s a shame that it looks like it will not happen.
