Tyson Fury

Fury, 33, was forced to shelve plans to fight Joshua after being ordered by an arbitrator to face Deontay Wilder, leaving fans gutted to see the undisputed showdown fall through.

Joshua defends his WBA (Super), IBF and WBO belts against Oleksandr Usyk next and AJ's promoter says he would be shocked if the Fury fight did not happen.

"I don't want to speak badly about Fury's team, but I don't trust them. Really, we've got to look after ourselves and our own business, which is Oleksandr Usyk. The only thing that matters right now is that fight.

WBC champion Fury had signed a contract in May to fight American Wilder for a third time on July 24.

Fury tested positive earlier this week and the fight will be postponed until the autumn.

Fury, 32, had been set to face fellow Briton Anthony Joshua in Saudi Arabia in August in a world heavyweight unification title fight, but an American arbitrator ordered Fury to fight Wilder again before Sept. 15.

Fury first fought Wilder, who is now 35, in 2018 and took the WBC title from him in a rematch in February 2020 with a seventh-round stoppage.

The all-British fight had looked set to take place in Saudi Arabia in August.

But it fell through when Deontay Wilder's team won an arbitration hearing stating the American had a right to a third fight with Fury.

"It might not be December or even next year," said Bunce.

The much anticipated fight between Fury and Joshua would have seen the pair contest all four world titles for the first time in the sport's history.

Fury is the WBC champion while Joshua has the WBO, WBA and IBF belts.

Fury, 32, agreed to face Joshua, 31, in Saudi Arabia.

But Wilder's team forced an arbitration hearing which concluded he had a contractual right to face Fury for a third time. The latest fight is set to take place in Las Vegas on 24 July.

"There's no chance he [Wilder] will step aside," Arum told Boxing Social.

"Whatever it is, the judge said he had a right to the rematch and we are going to go ahead with it."

Arum said Fury was angry when he learned that the fight against American Wilder will take place, adding: "It is what it is.

Joshua, 31, holds the IBF, WBO, WBA and IBO titles while Fury, 32, is the WBC belt holder.

"August the seventh, August the 14th. I think it's a very bad secret that the fight is happening in Saudi Arabia," Eddie Hearn, head of Matchroom Sport and Joshua's promoter said.

Joshua won back his belts from Andy Ruiz Jr in Diriyah, on the outskirts of the Saudi capital Riyadh, in December 2019. He had lost the belts to the Mexican-American in an earlier shock defeat.

Hearn said Fury's lawyers were going through the fine details but an announcement could come this week.

The two heavyweights clash in Britain on May 2 (NZT), finally coming together after their 2019 fight was cancelled after Parker suffered a spider bite while training in Las Vegas.

An incredulous Chisora raised doubts over that and labelled Parker “a chicken”. The rugged Brit has been merciless with his taunts at New Zealand’s former WBO champion ever since.

Parker, now preparing in Britain with his new trainer Andy Lee and working alongside his good mate Fury, says he’s keen to sort things out with Chisora where it matters most.

The pair could also share about £95 million (NZ$183.6 million) in pay-per-view fees in a potential split with four major broadcasters as part of the biggest deal in British boxing history.

Saudi Arabia's main challengers are Shanghai and Singapore as promoters race to find a site after two-fight contracts to unify the world heavyweight titles were signed.

Logistical headaches of hiring and selling tickets for a 90,000 venue during the pandemic has all but ended hopes of the first fight taking place in London or Las Vegas.

Joshua beat Bulgarian Kubrat Pulev in December to retain his IBF, WBO and WBA titles and set up the prospect of a mouth-watering clash with fellow Briton Fury, the WBC belt holder.

Fury, 32, has not fought for over a year since his knockout win against American Deontay Wilder, but said last month he would fight twice this year.

ESPN reported that both fights are set to take place in 2021 with the first in June or July followed by the rematch in November or December.

Just 10 days on from boxing through 12 rounds for a unanimous decision victory over fellow Kiwi Junior Fa (19-1) in Auckland, Parker will leave for London on Tuesday night to link up with a new trainer following his split from long time mentor Kevin Barry.

Stuff can confirm that new trainer will be former WBO middleweight champion Andy Lee and it's understood he was recommended to Parker by undefeated WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury (30-0-1).

The all-British heavyweight showdown would be the first fight in history in which all four heavyweight titles are on the line.

Fury, 32, is WBC champion while Joshua, 31, holds the IBF, WBA and WBO belts.

"We have a fight on our hands, and sorry to the governing bodies, that eclipses all belts," promotoer Eddie Hearn said.

"We've just got to be a bit careful because you may be on the verge of saying, 'Let's just get rid of politics right now. Let's just drop all the belts because if we lose one belt, we might as well lose them all,' he told Matchroom Boxing.