Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua still stuck in negotiation limbo

Tyson Fury stopped Arslanbek Makhmudov at Tottenham on Saturday and immediately called out Anthony Joshua, but the all-British heavyweight clash remains unsigned. Fury's team says they have put pen to paper. Joshua has not.

The pattern held after the stoppage win. Fury leaned through the ropes and waved Joshua toward him. Joshua stayed in his seat. Saudi boxing chief Turki Alalshikh spoke as if the announcement was ready to go. Netflix tweeted that the fight was happening in autumn. Frank Warren walked it back. Joshua gave no commitments. "He didn't want the smoke," Fury said afterward, per the BBC. "Ten years in the making and still there's uncertainty if it's going to happen next."

Why Joshua might need a tune-up first

Fury took a warm-up against Makhmudov after his fifth retirement. Joshua has only fought Jake Paul in the past 18 months and was involved in a December car crash that killed two close friends. A lower-pressure bout could let him shake off ring rust without the suffocating spotlight a Fury buildup brings. Fury dismissed that logic. "Taking interim fights, you can get chinned by anyone," he said, according to the BBC's report.

Both men are past their peak but still outdraw nearly every other fight on the planet. Moses Itauma is the most exciting young heavyweight in years. Conor Benn commands headlines at welterweight. Neither pulls the numbers Fury and Joshua do at Wembley, Croke Park, or anywhere else they choose to land. The sport already lived through Mayweather-Pacquiao, a fight that shattered records years too late and fell flat in the ring. The window for Fury-Joshua was 2019 or 2021. The question now is whether this generation closes without them ever sharing a canvas.

Fury says he has a three-fight deal this year but only wants one opponent. "If it isn't AJ next, I'm not interested in boxing again," he told reporters. Netflix released season two of At Home with the Furys hours after Saturday's win. The platform's 325 million subscribers could make Makhmudov-Fury one of the most-watched UK boxing matches in years. Fury-Joshua would do bigger business. Croke Park is being discussed as a venue. First, Joshua has to sign.

Source: bbc.com