By Norm Frauenheim
Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua are taking the finality out of Finally, the simple declarative promotional tag for their scheduled fight Dec. 11 at Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Wales.
If only it were true.
It looked to be Wednesday during a Iive-streamed news conference full of all the well-practiced rituals that say, yes, book your flight, reserve a room and buy a ticket because it’s happening. The London newser was business-like, a somewhat surprising departure from all that it had been in the chaos that led up to it.
Fury and Joshua stood in front of each other, looked into each other’s eyes and smiled, as if to say that all the insults and anger were just part of the show. Maybe so. But excuse the rest of us if we’re still bracing for more of the threats and insults that left some inevitable doubt about whether we’ll ever hear an opening bell.
The fight was on; the fight was off. The fight was in New York; the fight was in London. Zuffa was in; Zuffa was out. Dana White was promoting until he wasn’t. From day to day, it was like watching weather reports about an incoming hurricane. Nobody seems to know where in the hell it’s going
Expect more of the same. Issues are part of the game, especially this one, which has been overdue for at least a decade. Fury, ever the provocateur, delivered the most accurate forecast during an interview about Zuffa and White, who for now are not involved in the promotion.
He was asked about the promoting.
Isn’t that what we’re doing now? he said.
No answer necessary to that rhetorical query. Fury is spot on. Seemingly, there’s not much left say about an all-UK heavyweight fight that has been talked about, off and on, for more than 10 years. But it has stayed in the news, even after Oleksandr Usyk beat each man twice, thanks in large part to Fury, who always has a lot to say.
Fury understands that any big fight starts long before opening bell. It begins at the bargaining table, and that’s where Fury — a narrow betting favorite (minus-190 to minus-200) has been, delivering cheap shots like they were feints. With the fight still more than two months away, more are on the way.
It’s almost as intriguing as it is exasperating. Through it all, the quiet party has been Joshua, who has let his promoter, Eddie Hearn, speak for him. Joshua insisted that the fight happen in the UK, despite plans and Netflix’s urging that it be in New York. It’s written into Joshua’s contract. He refused to drop the clause. Hearn’s stubborn and persuasive arguments said he would not budge.
Then, there was Zuffa and White. According to Hearn, it was also written into Joshua’s contract that they could not be part of the promotion. Again, theJoshua corner would not budge. There’s a theory that Joshua can be bullied. It’s an idea that’s been there since 2019 when an unheralded Andy Ruiz Jr.upset him in Joshua’s only New York appearance.
But there are signs that Joshua has matured. He’ll be 37-years-old October 15. If Fury was trying to bully him, it didn’t work. At least, it hasn’t. Joshua has won the bargaining and bullying rounds. But many more are sure to come.
