Eddie Hearn has laid out the specifics of the Anthony Joshua vs. Tyson Fury deal for the first time, confirming a two-fight structure that deliberately excludes Deontay Wilder as Joshua’s warmup opponent.
Speaking with talkSPORT Boxing at the Glory in Giza press event in Egypt, Hearn said the offer on the table calls for Joshua to fight in July before facing Fury later in the year.
“The deal that we’ve been offered, which is to fight in July and then fight Tyson Fury in November, is not with Deontay Wilder in mind,” Hearn said. “I think the powers that be don’t really want us to be in that type of fight. We’re up for it. AJ’s also said to me, ‘I will fight Wilder and I will fight Fury back to back.’ But July in the UK looks likely.”
Turki Alalshikh and Riyadh Season Driving the Offer
Hearn identified the source of the deal as Turki Alalshikh and Riyadh Season, the Saudi-backed entity that has bankrolled several of boxing’s biggest events over the past two years.
“This is an offer that’s been made by Turki and Riyadh Season, wherever that fight could be, in July, and then fight Tyson Fury,” Hearn said. “That’s the deal that’s been proposed to us at the moment, and that looks like the route that we will take.”
Hearn Would Pick Wilder, But It’s Not His Call
The Matchroom promoter was candid about the tension between what he’d do as a promoter and what the deal structure allows. He openly acknowledged that Wilder would be his first choice for a July warmup if he were running the show.
“If we were promoting the event, that’s exactly what I’d be doing, Deontay Wilder or Tyson Fury,” Hearn said. “But this is a deal put to us with Fury against AJ as the mountaintop of that deal. There’ll be a lot of people that won’t want to go into a fight that they feel is risky and put that fight at jeopardy.”
He added: “We have no problem fighting Wilder. I don’t think it will be Wilder under the basis of this deal, but we’ll have to see.”
Netflix Jumped the Gun
Hearn also directly contradicted Netflix’s social media announcement that the Joshua vs. Fury fight is confirmed.
“Netflix put a tweet out saying it’s on. It’s not on,” Hearn said. “AJ didn’t want to put himself in a position and almost tell the British public that after all these years we’ve got it, it’s on, because it’s not. Now, will it be on? I truly believe so. And my instruction from Anthony Joshua is: make the fight.”
Joshua attended the Fury vs. Makhmudov fight on Saturday but refused to enter the ring for a premature announcement. Hearn said Joshua asked him directly whether the deal was done and declined to go out when told it wasn’t.
The Power Has Shifted
Hearn framed the current negotiation dynamic as a complete reversal from years past, when Fury held the belts and demanded 60-40 splits.
“It was the first time Fury’s kind of come out and gone, ‘I want you. You’re the only fight I want next,'” Hearn said. “And it was good to hear, and AJ’s the landlord.”
Hearn also referenced Joshua’s personal struggles without going into specifics, asking fans for patience as the timeline plays out.
“Sometimes people are quick to forget that,” Hearn said. “The work that he’s put in to even get himself to this position has been so admirable. It’s been incredible. I think it’s great just having him around after what’s happened. He’s ready and he’s motivated, but we’ve got to do it right.”
