28 July 2023 , 18:32
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Tyson Fury has been told he can't call himself one of the best heavyweights of all time if he doesn't beat Anthony Joshua.
Heavyweight champion Fury is preparing to fight former UFC titleholder Francis Ngannou on October 29 after his undisputed clash against Oleksandr Usyk was delayed again. The pair were supposed to fight on the same card as Joshua vs Deontay Wilder but they failed to reach an agreement for the second time this year.
Joshua, who rematches Dillian Whyte on August 12, is gunning for a fight with Fury in the hopes of becoming a three-time world champion. Joshua's promoter Eddie Hearn has questioned Fury's resume and he believes the Brit can only call himself a modern day great if he beats Usyk and Joshua.
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"Tyson Fury cares about one thing only, the money," Hearn said on Piers Morgan Uncensored. "Don't talk to me about legacy or undisputed. He's beat [Wladimir] Klitschko and Wilder, that's his wins. He needs to beat Usyk and 'AJ' and then we can talk about him, as I believe he is, as one of the greatest heavyweights of all time. To go down as a modern day great and put yourself up with Ali, Lennox Lewis and Joe Frazier, he's got to beat Usyk and Anthony Joshua."
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A fight between Joshua and Fury has been touted for years and it looked like the domestic clash would finally happen in August 2021 when both men signed contracts for the fight. Fury was then ordered to fight Wilder for the third time as Joshua went on to lose his unified world titles to Usyk, later failing to win them back in their rematch last August.
Tyson Fury has been told he must fight Anthony Joshua for the sake of his legacyHearn believes boxing fans are starting to lose patience with Fury for several of his big fights falling through as the promoter added: "I think it's a lot of things, I think Tyson Fury... I don't want to say he's being found out but he is not always as truthful as he appears on Instagram. Timing is something, I think television rights and partnerships are something, Instagram is something and ego very much is as well.
"Everybody wants to see this fight [Joshua vs Fury] but after he fights Dillian Whyte, he will fight Deontay Wilder in Saudi Arabia and then after that it has to be Tyson Fury. He turned down the Oleksandr Usyk fight, the biggest fight and most important fight in boxing to fight an MMA fighter who has never had a fight before in his life, also in Saudi Arabia."