Tyson Fury's manager Spencer Brown has expressed concern that Anthony Joshua could walk away from their highly anticipated heavyweight showdown. The pair signed to fight immediately after Fury's comeback win over Arslanbek Makhmudov in April, but both men were first tasked with getting through respective warm-up fights. Fury forced Polish veteran Mariusz Wach to quit on his stool at the end of the seventh stanza last month. A day after the Gypsy King's win behind closed doors in Thailand, Joshua survived two knockdowns to render Kristian Prenga unconscious in the second round.
Venue and date still unconfirmed
While a venue or date is still yet to be confirmed, rumours have been swirling that the monumental dust-up could take place on November 20 at Madison Square Garden. Earlier this weekend, Netflix — which is expected to showcase the fight — released a trailer during a recent WWE event, stating that Fury's clash with Joshua is 'coming soon.' But Brown has expressed concerns, and believes Joshua could scrap the planned bout by walking away altogether.
Brown's concerns
"Everybody's got a bit of doubt in their mind," he said in an interview with Sky Sports. "There's reasons you could think that. If you'd asked me a week ago, I'd have said no, but now it's a little bit concerning that things haven't progressed down the line. We need to get this fight on." He added: "You can't keep flogging a dead horse, can you? We've been flogging a dead horse for months now. We've waited and waited to do it at Wembley. The hope is fading that it's going to be at Wembley."
"A decision must be made. Let's get the fight on wherever it is, whether it's in Timbuktu or whether it's in Wembley Stadium. We just want to get it announced. People are getting bored. We're in danger of really boring people."
Promoter's stance
Joshua's promoter, Eddie Hearn, recently told Mirror Fighting that no agreement has been reached to move the venue from London. "We are in constant communication with Turki and SELA but as of yet there is no agreement to any variation within the contract." But Hearn has admitted a deal could be reached in the coming days. "We don't want to change the venue or the host country," he told About Boxing. "But if they're that desperate, we will find a way to help. It's been going for a month now and they haven't changed their mind; there's not even been a conversation about the UK."
"We are talking through a roadmap of what it might look like to change the deal. If they do all the things we've discussed and agreed in principle, there is a very good chance the fight will take place in America. It's a ballache; it's an arduous process we're going through. There is a way that we would be, not happy, but comfortable with doing the fight in America."
"Right now there is absolutely no agreement to change the contract we signed. From our side, no announcement is imminent; everything has to be locked down if they want to do this." Fury has no concern over the fight's venue and took to social media to prematurely suggest a deal was done. "I've got some big news going to be dropped very, very soon," he said. "There is a big fight on the horizon, it's the one you've all been waiting for and it's about to be announced imminently."
