Anthony Joshua has officially accepted Tyson Fury’s offer to fight in the ‘Battle of Britain,’ paving the way for the biggest fight in British boxing history.
Joshua was the unexpected recipient of a call from Fury, who is unwilling to wait until 2023 for an undisputed clash with Ukrainian Oleksandr Usyk.
Joshua was offered a 40% cut of what would be a record-breaking payday to face the Gypsy King.
Fury’s promoter, Frank Warren, confirmed on Tuesday that he would be sending Joshua an official written offer to fight Fury.
A date in early November was initially put on the table, but Joshua can only return by December at the earliest following last month’s defeat to Usyk.
Fury also wants to include a rematch clause and Joshua’s team are happy with the terms, as long as they get the lion’s share for the second fight if they win in December.
Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn confirmed they are willing to take the deal on offer after talks with Frank Warren’s son George.
He told iFL TV on Thursday, “We just went back this (Thursday) morning and said I spoke to AJ about that offer, we think, I think particularly he deserves more than 40 per cent.
“But, he’s happy. And I don’t make the decisions, he does. So, I went back this morning and said, ‘We accept 60/40’.
“We want that reversed in the rematch, rightfully so, because you’re champion here, you want the bigger split, which I think is fair.
“And we want to do the fight in December. Now, interestingly, they have December 17th, Queensberry held at the Millennium, so that’s perfect.”
Fury initially wanted to fight WBA, IBF, and WBO champion Usyk, who beat Joshua twice in the space of 11 months.
It would have been the heavyweight division’s first four-belt undisputed title decider.
But Fury wants to return to the ring by the end of the year and therefore turned his attention to Joshua.
However, despite having December 17th held, Fury has appeared to tell Joshua there are only two dates he’ll fight. He claimed on talkSPORT that November 26 at Wembley or December 3 in Cardiff are the dates on offer.
He said, “I have Nov 26th at Wembley or Dec 3rd. One is 11 weeks, and one is 12 weeks.
“If a professional athlete who’s shredded all year round can’t get himself in shape in three months, there’s a problem.”
Joshua, 32, was set to return before the end of the year against an opponent ranked within the world’s top 15.
But plans to build back steadily could be cast aside if the chance to challenge for Fury’s WBC belt goes from longshot to reality.
Promoter Warren backed the all-Brit bout to break the domestic PPV record with two million sales.
And if the price takes an expected increase to £30, it leaves £60million made in box office receipts alone.
And the last time Joshua boxed in Wales, beating Joseph Parker, 30, in 2018, around £10m was made by paying fans.
It means Joshua and Fury would be expected to clear well over £70m in PPVs and ticket sales.
Negotiations are only at a start but Hearn has maintained they are happy with the financial terms.
He said, “In essence, we accept the offer of 60/40 and we confirmed that this morning. Lots of conversations to be had.”
