Tyson Fury has said this year will be the last of his career. The Gypsy King faces Mariusz Wach in Thailand today and is due to fight Anthony Joshua before the end of 2026.
Fury's final year
Fury, 37, retired for the sixth time last January before again reversing that decision barely a year later. The former unified heavyweight world champion returned to the ring after 16 months away in April with a unanimous decision victory over Arslanbek Makhmudov at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Speaking before his second fight of 2026, Fury told The Sun: "This is my final year. That's why I want to be active. I don't want to go on until I'm 65 years old." He then confirmed: "This is the last year, yeah. Final year, 26."
Plans for 2026
Fury hinted at a busy autumn and winter, saying: "I just want to keep busy, keep active. It's not about money, it's not about belts, it's about nothing now. It's about enjoying my life and enjoying my career and doing what I love to do. That's boxing training, so maybe I'll do quite a lot this year."
Fury has not fought more than twice in a calendar year since 2018. On that occasion, he was also coming out of retirement, after two-and-a-half years away. There were two warm-up fights against Francesco Pianeta and Sefer Seferi in the summer before taking on Deontay Wilder. If he is to fight four times in 2026 and rematch Joshua, that would be the first time he has done so since 2011.
Fury was fighting for British and Commonwealth titles at the time, beating Derek Chisora for those two belts. However, one of those bouts was over ten rounds, rather than 12. He has had only one 10-round fight since then, against Francis Ngannou three years ago. Any bout with Joshua would also presumably not be over anything less than 12 rounds.
Joshua fight details
Fury fights Wach a day before Joshua takes on Kristian Prenga, with the British duo expected to face each other later this year. It is Joshua's first bout since he was involved in a devastating car crash last year, which saw his two close friends Latif Ayodele and Sina Ghami pass away.
Details about the prospective fight are still to be confirmed, with the hope that they will be announced after both of them come through their bouts this week. Turki Al-Sheikh announced in April that Netflix would broadcast it, but a venue remains unconfirmed. Joshua's promoter has previously said that the contract specifies the United Kingdom. Al-Sheikh acknowledged earlier this month that Wembley Stadium would be his preferred host this month.
