play Live Sign upShow navigation menuplay Live Click here to searchsearchSign upSport|BoxingFury claims Joshua fight is off, calls for another Usyk rematchTyson Fury says Anthony Joshua is ‘weak-minded’ and cannot make up his mind about the date and venue of their fight.
xwhatsapp-strokecopylinkgoogleAdd Al Jazeera on GoogleinfoTyson Fury has twice lost to Oleksandr Usyk, a two-time undisputed heavyweight champion [File: John Sibley/Action Images via Reuters]By AFPPublished On 7 Sep 20267 Sep 2026Tyson Fury claims Anthony Joshua is backing out of their much-anticipated all-British heavyweight boxing showdown and has challenged Oleksandr Usyk to a trilogy fight, throwing the planned Fury-Joshua clash into doubt.
In an expletive-laden video posted on Instagram on Sunday, Fury, 38, claimed Joshua was pulling out of the fight.
Fury and Joshua have been locked in talks over a long-awaited meeting, but the “Gypsy King” is impatient with the lack of confirmation, calling his rival a “coward” last week.
The two former heavyweight world champions were expected to meet in November at Madison Square Garden in New York, but the choice of venue was met with backlash from British boxing fans.
In a string of videos posted over the past week, Fury claimed that Joshua’s lack of response and indecision on the venue have cast doubts over the fight.
He instead asked his longtime Ukrainian rival Usyk to meet him in the ring again.
“This will only lead me to a fight with Oleksandr Usyk,” he said. “Oleksandr, you’re his [Joshua’s] trainer and his sensei, and you know he is … weak-minded … and that he would never fight the Gypsy King, which you have had the guts to do twice.
“You got the decisions last time, fair play to you. Good luck to you; let’s do it again. Let’s run it back in November.
“The ball is now in your court … do you want to fight me this year, 2026, or are you calling it quits? Let me know because I am now looking for a new opponent.”
Fury has twice lost to Usyk, a two-time undisputed heavyweight champion.
Joshua has been working with the Ukrainian’s training team.
Madison Square Garden was widely expected to be announced as the venue for the Fury-Joshua fight, even though Joshua’s camp prefers Wembley Stadium.
