What to expect from Fury and Joshua's two-fight deal

As boxing slowly begins to creep its way back into our lives, speculation is running wild about when we’ll see the next big fight.

One of the more interesting developments came from Tyson Fury, who announced he will face off against fellow Brit, Anthony Joshua, as part of a two-fight deal.

There is no better time to make this happen, and the potential bout is rife with subplots.

Fury and Joshua have other fights looming

Both fighters have pending business to attend to, includuing Joshua’s mandatory defense against Kubrat Pulev and Fury’s contractually obligated rematch to Deontay Wilder.

Joshua and Fury are both prohibitive favorites in those bouts, but it’s Fury who has a tougher task ahead.

Though many believe Wilder is making a tactical error by going straight into a Fury rematch, Wilder really has no choice. The power-punching heavyweight is never going to bridge the skill gap between them. Just as it is now or never for Fury-Joshua, Wilder sees it the same way for their upcoming trilogy bout. 

Assuming Joshua gets through Pulev, he'll face the greatest challenge of his career, just two fights removed from his shocking loss to Andy Ruiz. For a long period of time, many saw Joshua as the second coming of Lennox Lewis, but Lewis never faced a foe who physically and stylistically could trouble him. 

Joshua has the most to lose

There is some sense of finality in this proposed fight series. The winner would become the first undisputed heavyweight champion in nearly 20 years, but there is a sense Joshua has the most to lose.

Before the shocking loss to Ruiz, Joshua was seen as the heir apparent to the heavyweight greats. He now faces a fight that could define his career, and he’ll almost certainly be an underdog when the fight gets announced.

Legendary status is on the line for Fury

Fury defeating Joshua would clearly make him the best heavyweight of this era, and his claim to greatness would be indefensible.

While the quality of the division is nowhere near the 1970s or 1990s, Fury has already proven he has the tools to be a force in any era.

It is hard to imagine Joshua beating the version of Fury we saw tear Wilder apart, but it isn’t out of the question. Unlike Wilder, Joshua has a strong fundamental base and is athletic enough to deal with Fury’s awkwardness, but his lapses in defense and questionable conditioning make it difficult to support him.

This will easily be the biggest fight in British boxing history and will captivate the world. Let’s hope these two are matched well enough to give us a pair of fights that live up to the hype.

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