For years, British boxing fans were told the Joshua Fury fight was inevitable.
Every few months, we’d hear that negotiations were progressing. Somebody would say they were close. Another interview would appear. Another promise would be made.
And yet somehow, year after year, the fight never happened.
Now, with Eddie Hearn once again sounding confident that Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury will finally meet, I have to be honest.
I don’t really care anymore.
That might sound strange because, make no mistake, the Joshua Fury fight will still be massive. Wembley will sell out. The pay-per-view numbers will be huge. Everybody will talk about it.
But I think there’s a big difference between a fight selling because of what it is and a fight selling because of what it should have been.
And that’s where this whole saga has become frustrating.
The Perfect Time Came And Went
Five years ago, this fight felt unavoidable.
Two heavyweight champions. Two unbeaten British stars. Two personalities who couldn’t have been more different.
It felt like a fight that would define an era.
Instead, boxing did what boxing always seems to do. It waited.
Negotiations dragged on. Other fights happened. Defeats happened. Titles changed hands. Circumstances changed.
The years rolled by and suddenly what should have been the biggest sporting event in British boxing became something else entirely.
I’ve spoken before about whether the fight had already become overdue:
And with every year that passes, that feeling only becomes stronger.
It Will Sell Because Of The Names
Let’s be clear.
The Joshua Fury fight will make a fortune.
Nobody should doubt that.
But I think it will sell because of Anthony Joshua. It will sell because of Tyson Fury. It will sell because we’ve spent almost a decade hearing about it.
It will sell because fans have invested emotionally in the idea of the fight.
Not necessarily because of what both men are today.
The event will be built on what the fight represented five years ago, not what it represents now.
That’s an important difference.
We’ve Seen This Before
Boxing fans have seen this movie before.
Floyd Mayweather versus Manny Pacquiao was enormous, but by the time it happened both men had already passed their absolute peak.
For British fans, Amir Khan versus Kell Brook felt very similar. Years of build-up eventually produced a fight that should have happened much earlier.
Both events sold brilliantly.
Neither really lived up to the expectations created by years of waiting.
And I honestly think the Joshua Fury fight risks ending up in exactly the same category.
Chasing One Last Payday
Maybe I’m being cynical.
But sometimes it feels like both men have spent the last few years chasing one final giant payday.
Again, I can’t blame them.
Boxing is a business and every fighter deserves to maximise their earnings.
But from a sporting perspective, I think the significance has faded.
Neither man is the heavyweight king.
Neither man holds all the belts.
Neither man is fighting to prove who is number one in the world.
Those questions have already been answered elsewhere.
I Think Expectations Are Impossible To Meet
The biggest problem facing the Joshua Fury fight isn’t age.
It’s expectation.
Fans have spent nearly ten years imagining this fight.
Ten years of debates.
Ten years of fantasy scorecards.
Ten years of hearing that it’s just around the corner.
No fight could realistically live up to that.
And I suspect that after the final bell, many fans will simply shrug and say:
“Yeah, that was alright.”
Not because it was a bad fight.
But because we’ve spent so long convincing ourselves it was going to be something legendary.
I Honestly Think Boxing Missed Its Chance
Maybe that’s harsh.
Maybe they’ll produce an absolute classic and prove everyone wrong.
But right now, I can’t help feeling that boxing missed the moment.
The Joshua Fury fight should have been Britain’s answer to Ali versus Frazier.
Instead, it feels like it’s heading towards becoming another Mayweather-Pacquiao or Khan-Brook.
Still successful.
Still profitable.
But arriving years after it truly mattered most.
Over To You
Am I being too harsh?
Would you still be excited for the Joshua Fury fight, or do you think boxing has simply waited too long?
Let me know in the comments, share your thoughts with other boxing fans and head over to CMBoxing for more opinion, analysis and plenty more debates from the world of boxing.