Anthony Joshua and Wladimir Klitschko await Tyson Fury decision as David Haye confirms fight

Klitschko is without an opponent after Fury pulled out of fight

Jack Austin
Tuesday 11 October 2016 10:39 EDT
Comments
Joshua has not fought since beating Dominic Breazeale in June
Joshua has not fought since beating Dominic Breazeale in June (Getty Images)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Anthony Joshua’s highly-anticipated heavyweight bout against former world champion Wladimir Klitschko seems like it is done after a tweet from fellow Brit David Haye.

Representatives of IBF champion Joshua have been locked in talks with the Klitschko camp since the Ukrainian’s rematch with WBO and WBA champion Tyson Fury was called off for the second time last month.

Promoter Eddie Hearn was confident the fight could be arranged but suggested there would be no announcement until the legal matters regarding Fury pulling out of the Klitschko rematch had been completed.

Former WBA king Haye, who had also been hoping for an all-British showdown with Joshua, tweeted: “Great to hear Joshua-Klitschko is done. Timing is everything & the time now is perfect for AJ. Reminds me of Ali vs Berbick.”

However, there has been no word from either camp to confirm the news, with an official announcement to possibly be made next week.

The reason for a delay in the announcement could be as both camps wait for Fury’s position to be fully clarified after his failed drugs test by the Voluntary Anti-Doping Agency (Vada) in the United States last month, although the test is still yet to be made public.

Fury could face a ban and his licence revoked by the British Boxing Board of Control (BBBofC) should they find him guilty of failing a drugs test, meaning he would also likely be stripped of his belts.

If the belts are vacated, they could also including in the Joshua-Klitschko fight, although Fury will be hoping to convince the sanctioning bodies to name him ‘champion in recess’ – meaning he could challenge for the titles again in the event he returns to boxing.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in