After numerous false starts, Tyson Fury vs. Anthony Joshua could finally happen in 2026, the biggest fight in British boxing history which has been years in the making.
The mega-fight between the two former two-time heavyweight champions is planned after years of failed attempts.
If they had met in 2021, it would have been for the undisputed world heavyweight title. Serial failures to make Fury vs. Joshua a reality have not diminished the appeal or demand for it.
This is the story of the near-misses to make Fury vs. Joshua, and how it might still become the biggest fight in boxing for years.
Fury and Joshua, the early years
June 2010: Long before they were household names, Fury and Joshua actually shared a ring. There were only a few people at Finchley Amateur Boxing Club in north London to witness the three rounds between a 21-year-old Fury and a 20-year-old Joshua.
While Joshua was unknown outside of amateur boxing circles hoping to qualify for the 2012 Olympics, Fury had gained some attention after turning professional in 2008. Fury had cockily offered a reward of a Rolex watch to anyone who could drop him in sparring, and Joshua furiously attempted to earn the reward.
They were stopped sparring beyond three rounds, but it was the start of a famous rivalry.
Joshua insists he got the better of Fury and told him in April 2026, after Fury's latest win: "Tyson I beat you up when we were kids. And after seeing you tonight, I will beat you up again, easily."
August 2012: When Joshua won Olympic super heavyweight gold at London 2012 and the professional ranks beckoned, it seemed likely he would eventually run into Fury again.
But for the immediate future, Fury had other targets. He had already beaten Derek Chisora for the British title and focused his trash talk mainly on former champion David Haye and Wladimir Klitschko, then the division's No 1.
November 2014: Fury shaved his head and grew a beard ahead of his world heavyweight title eliminator with Chisora. He was asked to shave it off the day of the fight, after claiming his beard was inspired by the man dubbed the most violent prisoner in Britain, Charles Bronson. Chisora retired after 10 rounds as Fury moved a step closer to Klitschko.
Joshua also had a good year: he knocked out all seven opponents within 11 minutes of boxing. Ahead of Fury vs. Chisora, Joshua told this reporter he would be ready for either of them in the summer of 2015.
He said: "It will be tough -- Fury and Chisora aren't rubbish fighters -- but I'm confident in my ability and know my determination will outweigh theirs. Next summer would be great, but it's just if I'm ready mentally for it."
November 2015: Fury outpointed Klitschko for the WBA, IBF and WBO world heavyweight titles in Germany. In an inspired performance, Fury outboxed the Ukrainian.
The less experienced Joshua was the one doing the calling out and there was already interest in seeing Fury vs. Joshua. Joshua told ESPN ahead of Fury's points triumph over Klitschko: "100% I think me and Tyson could fight next year. People demand what they want to see and they are always coming up to me and asking when am I going to fight Fury."
December 2015: Just 10 days after winning three versions of the world title, Fury was stripped of the IBF belt due to rules about mandatory challengers.
Fury and Joshua, the world champion years
April 2016: Joshua picked up the same IBF belt Fury was stripped of when he destroyed Charles Martin inside two rounds. He became Britain's second reigning world heavyweight champion along with Fury, who still held the WBA and WBO belts.
"Me, Tyson Fury and David Haye, we have to fight," Joshua told a post-fight press conference.
"We can't get through this whole era without fighting, we will get it on at the right time. It's just bound to happen at some stage."
Despite both holding world titles, chances of the unification fight happening quickly fell apart.
June 2016: Fury was charged by UK Anti-Doping with using the banned steroid nandrolone (from 2015 samples). A rematch vs. Klitschko, set for July 9, was postponed due to Fury suffering an ankle injury.
September 2016: Fury cancelled an October 29 rematch with Klitschko due to mental health problems. Fury had ballooned in weight as he battled problems with drink, drugs and depression.
October 2016: Fury relinquished the WBO and WBA belt to focus on his recovery. Fights vs. Klitschko, Joshua or anyone else seemed lost.
May 2017: Joshua called out former champion Fury following his sensational 11th-round stoppage of Klitschko at Wembley Stadium.
"Fury where you at, baby?" Joshua said while still in the ring, to the roar of the 90,000 crowd.
"I love fighting. Tyson Fury, I know he's been talking, I want to give 90,000 a chance [to see us], I just want to fight."
Fury's quick response on social media added fuel to the fire: "Challenge accepted. We will give the world the biggest fight in 500 years. I will play with you. You are a boxer's dream."
December 2017: After returning to training, Fury is given a backdated two-year ban, clearing the way for his return.
Fury and Joshua, the prime years
June 2018: After two years and seven months out, Fury returned to stop Sefer Seferi.
August 2018: Following Fury's second win on the comeback trail, a big fight beckons but it is not vs. Joshua. Fury and WBC champion Deontay Wilder yelled at each other after Fury's 10-round points win over Francesco Pianeta in Belfast.
December 2018: Fury outboxed Wilder in the early rounds but the American forced two knockdowns to earn a draw and defend his WBC belt in Los Angeles. Fury and fans called for a rematch.
June 2019: In a seventh title defence and on Joshua's US debut, hopes of a Fury fight suffered a hammer blow when Andy Ruiz Jr. stopped AJ in seven rounds. Joshua signed for an immediate rematch vs. Ruiz Jr., while Fury stopped Tom Schwarz in Round 2 as he focused on setting up a rematch with Wilder.
December 2019: Joshua won back the WBA, IBF and WBO belts with a wide but cautious points win over Ruiz Jr. in Saudi Arabia.
February 2020: Fury produced a brilliant display to stop Wilder in Round 7 and become WBC champ -- but there is a rematch clause.
June 2020: Joshua and Fury, both at their peaks and with all the world titles between them, agreed to fight two times in 2021. The first fight -- reportedly worth £200 million - would be in the summer of 2021.
"We have agreed the basics of the deal, a two-fight deal," Eddie Hearn, who promotes Joshua, told ESPN.
Venues and dates had yet to be agreed while both boxers also had defences of their titles to get through before their fight could become a reality.
December 2020: Joshua beat Kubrat Pulev to retain his IBF, WBO and WBA titles to set up the prospect of an undisputed title fight vs. Fury.
"It's not about the opponent -- it's about who has got the belt, and if that's Tyson Fury, let it be Tyson Fury," Joshua said after dispatching Pulev. "It's one fight at a time, picking them off one by one."
Meanwhile, the menacing figure of Oleksandr Usyk, who won a gold medal at the 2012 Olympics like Joshua, now loomed large on the heavyweight scene. After ruling as undisputed cruiserweight champion, Usyk won a second fight at heavyweight in October 2024. But the focus is still on making Fury vs. Joshua.
January 2021: Hearn said a deal to fight Fury in 2021 is all but done, with a venue in the Middle East a front-runner to host it.
February 2021: A deal seems tantalisingly close and fight fans are getting excited.
"The fight is very close to being done now," Frank Warren, Fury's co-promoter, told ESPN. "It's all COVID-19 related but I think it will go on sometime in June, latest July.
"It's going to be a two-fight deal, and it depends what happens in the first fight and the agreement of all parties as to where and what happens after that."
Obstacles such as restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, rival broadcasters, Wilder's claim Fury contractually owes him a rematch and Joshua's mandatory defence against Usyk will not stop the fight from happening next according to Warren.
Fury and Joshua, the uncertain years
May 2021: Hopes are dashed at an advanced stage when an arbitration hearing in the United States ruled that Wilder was owed a third fight with Fury.
Sep 2021: Joshua revived hopes the fight could be made again after he told reporters: "Let's get it on. As the WBA, IBF and WBO champion prepared to defend his belts vs. Usyk, Joshua said: "What an honour it would be to fight Tyson, get another great fighter on my record, beat him, and then we would move forward. I'd love that opportunity.
"We were close to doing it, [promoter] Matchroom did a great job, managing a heavyweight undisputed championship of the world fight during a pandemic. We were a couple of weeks away and then it came to an end, unfortunately.
"It would have been one of the biggest boxing fights in history. Yeah, we'll get it on at some stage, we're professional."
Usyk proved too good for Joshua in a points win at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London in a further blow to the chance of Fury vs. Joshua happening any time soon.
October 2021: Fury knocked out Wilder in Round 11 in Las Vegas, to confirm his status as the world's leading heavyweight. Leading up to the fight, he had dismissed Joshua as a "chicken nugget" and a "bodybuilder". After the fight, he claimed he was the best heavyweight of his era and cast doubt on fighting AJ, saying: "The bubble has been burst."
April 2022: Fury announced he had retired after his sixth-round stoppage win over Dillian Whyte but a few months later claimed: "I'm telling you the truth, if you want me out of retirement it's going to cost half a billion."
Oleksandr Usyk has his say on the winner of a potential Tyson Fury vs. Anthony Joshua bout, having beaten both of the heavyweights in his career.
August 2022: Joshua lost a rematch vs. Usyk in Saudi Arabia, also on points, but that did not stop talk of him facing Fury again. Speculation began to build that they would meet in Cardiff for a purse of £75 million.
September 2022: Joshua accepted a 40-60% offer to fight WBC world heavyweight champion Fury, according to Hearn, after accepting a formal offer from Fury's co-promoter Frank Warren. Hearn said the fight could take place at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Wales on Dec. 17.
But later in September, Fury declared the fight off after claiming AJ failed to meet a deadline of signing a contract.
"Well guys, it's official. D-day has come and gone. It's gone past five o'clock, Monday. No contract has been signed," Fury said on Instagram.
"It's officially over for Joshua. He is now out in the cold with the wolfpack. Forget about it. Always knew you didn't have the minerals to fight the 'Gypsy King.' Regardless of what you say now, I don't really care. Good luck with your career, and your life. End of. Peace out."
Fury announced he will instead face Chisora for a third time. It was a bit like being promised an expensive meal out at a high-end restaurant, only to then be told you're having dinner at the local fast-food joint.
March 2023: After twice experiencing fights vs. Fury fall through, Joshua was cool on the prospect of ever facing his rival as he prepared to face Jermaine Franklin in London on April 1 after back-to-back points losses to Usyk. He blamed Fury for being too difficult to negotiate with.
He said: "I was supposed to fight him before I fought Usyk, the first time, and he pulled out due to his legal case, the arbitration, with Wilder. Then we had the one for this December [when talks also broke down].
"Will the fight with me and him get made? I don't know. Look at all the s*** they are going through now with this Usyk stuff. It's just crazy.
"I don't publicise things so it's actually good that people are starting to see what goes on in negotiations.
"It's good that people can actually see the s*** that people have got to put up with to make a fight. [But] me and Usyk got two successful fights done."
Joshua added: "Without Fury on my record I will not wake up tomorrow and regret my whole boxing career. If he is on it, I am on it, if he is not, he is not. Whatever."
Fury vs. Joshua looked lost through late-2022 into late-2024, when Saudi powerbroker Turki Alalshikh reignited the push for the British mega-fight.
September 2024: As Joshua prepared to face Daniel Dubois in a bid to become a three-time world champion, Hearn said the winner would progress to face the winner of Usyk vs. Fury next.
Hearn told reporters: "If he wins on Sept. 21 I believe he will fight Tyson Fury, win or lose against Usyk, but he also wants to fight Usyk for undisputed, that's always been his dream.
"The great thing about Sept. 21 is I know Turki Alalshikh [who runs boxing in Saudi Arabia] will look around at Wembley and will be dying to do another one. In an ideal world, and this is nothing I have discussed with [Alalshikh], AJ wins, Fury wins, two fights next year for undisputed, one in Riyadh, one in Wembley."
But Dubois floored Joshua four times in a stunning Round 5 KO, which shattered plans of Fury vs. Joshua once again. Dubois' first defence of the IBF belt ended a four-fight winning streak by AJ, who did not fight again for 15 months.
Fury and Joshua, the final years
October 2025: Hearn revealed he had talks about a fight vs. Fury for 2026.
"I've never heard him speak about anyone like he speaks about Tyson Fury, not just wanting to fight him, but saying he can't wait to knock him spark out," Hearn told ESPN.
December 2025: In the immediate aftermath of Joshua's win over Jake Paul, demand cranks up for him to face Fury next.
"If Tyson Fury is as serious as he thinks he is... Step in the ring me next if you're a real bad boy. Don't do all that talking ... Let's see you in a ring and talk with your fists," Joshua said in the ring following his Round 6 win over Paul.
But later in the month Joshua was injured in a car crash that killed two close friends and members of his team. The accident not only left doubts over the future of Joshua's career for a short period, but also silenced talk about a fight vs. Fury.
March 2026: As Fury prepared to come out of his latest retirement and end a 16-month break, he gradually began to talk more about the possibility of fighting Joshua, shifting from a trilogy fight vs. Usyk as the priority.
He told ESPN: "After Anthony's tragedy I've not really been pushing the point but let's see how he feels. If wants to return then great, but if he doesn't want to return then also great. It's not something I'm going to hold my breath for. We've been on the verge of that fight about five times and it still hasn't happened."
Joshua, meanwhile, had resumed training alongside his former conqueror Usyk, now a part of his team.
April 2026: After a win over Arslanbek Makhmudov, Fury grabbed the microphone in the ring and called on ringside spectator Joshua to fight him next. "I, the Gypsy King, challenge you, Anthony Joshua, to fight me next. Do you accept the challenge? Do not run from me this time, let's dance," roared Fury.
AJ refused to be drawn into a slanging match or commit to facing Fury next, but the back-and-forth between them was still more entertaining than the mundane points win over Makhmudov, who was able to land some meaty right hands which would have been interesting viewing for Joshua.
"Let's get the fight on. Here's the thing. If it's not Anthony Joshua next, I'm not interested in boxing," Fury told his post-fight news conference.
"I'll eat a thousand Easter eggs, go up to 35 stone. I'm out. I'm not interested. It's either him or I'm gone again.
"I'm not interested in up-and-comers, someone trying to prove a point over me, I don't care. I don't care about rankings. I don't care about belts. I only care now about AJ. That's the defining fight for British boxing."
Joshua said he wanted an interim fight before stepping in the ring to face Fury. He told Netflix: "I'll fight Tyson Fury tomorrow, especially after watching [this fight]. I'm not going to sit here and say: 'Yeah, I'll fight him.' I'm not here to get clout. I'm here to fight. Contracts will be sent over. We'll go through the nitty gritty and you'll probably see us in the ring next, more than likely.
"I was just in a serious incident maybe four months ago. I need to really check out what's going on with my return to the ring. But I'm here. I'm keeping my eye in the game. There's real stuff happening in my life. I'm not ducking no one."
But Joshua's reticence did not stop talks escalating and both sides then announced the fight was a "done deal" for November 2026, broadcast on Netflix. A venue was not confirmed.
May 2026: Here we go again... Fury will have an interim fight before a clash vs. AJ, promoter Warren believes. Later in the month, Joshua announced his next fight will be vs. little-known Albanian Kristian Prenga in Saudi Arabia on July 25. Still, the trash talk continues as Fury lambasts Joshua for being "chinny."