Anthony Joshua hopes to tee up his long-awaited clash with Tyson Fury by delivering a statement performance against Kristian Prenga in July. Now, ‘The Gypsy King’ has confirmed whether he would like an additional fight before facing Joshua at the end of the year.
After Fury’s win against Arslanbek Makhmudov last month, talks progressed quickly for what had been one of the most elusive match-ups in British boxing history, but Joshua’s team maintained that he needed a ‘warm-up’ before that mammoth fight.
When it was revealed that an agreement for Fury-Joshua was finally in place, ‘AJ’s summer fight against Albania’s Kristian Prenga on July 25 was also announced.
Speaking to talkSPORT Boxing, promoter Frank Warren explained that Makhmudov was supposed to be Fury’s fight before the big one, but that Joshua’s tragic car crash pushed their plans back, with another interim fight for Fury now expected.
“Thatpushed his [Joshua’s] fight back, so they were really supposed to be fighting in August against each other, that has been pushed back.
“Come October/November, Tyson will have been out of the ring against for seven months so he will want to be fighting in-between. I have spoken with him and that is what he wants to do, so we will see.”
A low-risk opponent has to be anticipated considering what is at stake for 37-year-old Fury, but fans will hope that the two-time world champion selects a more recognisable opponent than Joshua, as he looks to build further momentum ahead of their grudge match.
