Eddie Hearn reveals it is ‘crunch week’ for Anthony Joshua vs Tyson Fury to get announced as he holds out for UK fight

EDDIE HEARN has revealed we are entering a “crunch week” for Anthony Joshua’s fight with Tyson Fury to get announced. Both men have signed contracts to finally face off – though AJ’s specifically states the bout MUST take place in the UK. Anthony Joshua is entering a ‘crunch week’ in talks to fight Tyson Fury Credit: Getty Fury and Joshua are awaiting a fight announcement Credit: AFP But organisers including Netflix and Saudi fight financier Turki Alalshikh prefer a fight in America to capitalise on prime-time US viewing. Hearn has sent contract revisions as part of an addendum to change Joshua’s contract to allow for a Stateside clash. Sign up for the Sport newsletter Thank you! And as he awaits feedback, the promoter admitted the next few days could prove vital as he still holds out for a UK fight. Hearn told SunSport: “We’re running out of time. Well, we’re not running out of time because we’re ready. “I mean, AJ’s already in a big part of his recovery from the last fight and he’s ready to go back into camp. “But there’s a lot of stuff that’s being asked for us to do beyond the contract in terms of the media obligations. “So, we can’t start disrupting camp too much, and I think this week’s really the crunch week.” At the moment, Friday, November 20, at New York’s Madison Square Garden is the targeted fight date and venue. Most read in Sport BEST FREE BETS AND BETTING SIGN UP OFFERS The Home of Boxing in 2026 There's a massive year of boxing ahead! It’s shaping up to be a blockbuster year of action inside the boxing ring. The Gypsy King has beaten Mariusz Wach in his second fight of the year to set up a huge fight with Anthony Joshua And AJ did the same, knocking out Kristian Prenga in the second round of a thrilling encounter – the Brit was knocked down twice in the opening round. Now fans are looking forward to Moses Itauma’s return for his toughest fight yet against Filip Hrgovic in August. Here’s all the big fights coming up… August Sat 29 – Moses Itauma vs Filip Hrgovic – DAZN September Sat 12 – Conor Benn vs Ryan Garcia – DAZN *If you click a link in this boxout, we will earn affiliate revenue. Hearn revealed part of the revisions sent over to Saudi-based entertainment company Sela – helping fund the bout – includes a bigger purse for AJ to help offset the US tax deficit. The 47-year-old Matchroom Boxing boss reluctantly conceded that if their terms are met, they will finally accept a fight in America. He said: “If they can accept what we put forward and everything can be wrapped up and they really want to do it, we’re going to be having that conversation.” As the talks tirelessly rumble on, the Battle of Britain could face a delay until December, something Hearn and AJ are against. He said: “Listen, if they turned around and said December, it’s probably better for the build-up to be honest with you. “But we don’t want to push till 2027. Like, we don’t want to train over Christmas. AJ’s ready. “He’s having a couple of weeks off, he’s been on holiday, he’s doing a week of recovery this week, then he’s ready to go back into camp. “So in AJ’s mind, that November 20-21 weekend is when the fight is happening.” Joshua, 36, got off the canvas twice to KO little-known Albanian Kristian Prenga, 35, in July. A day earlier, Fury, 38, had a more routine seven-round warm-up win over 46-year-old Polish punchbag Mariusz Wach. It leaves the pair of superstar ex-heavyweight champions sharing the same schedule and agonisingly leaving it to the middlemen to thrash out. Hearn is not yet ready to issue a deadline for the date and location to be confirmed – as he still desperately hopes and holds out for a UK bout. He said: “I mean, the deadline is they’ve got a contract to stage the fight in November or in December in the UK. “Now, I keep saying to people we don’t really have to do anything. We could just ignore them. “But we’re not doing that because they’re our partners and they’ve been our friends and we do a lot of work together. “But we want this fight in the UK. We just want what was promised to us.” Comment now