Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua have long dominated the British and global boxing scene, but 2023 could be a pivotal year for both men.
Just a matter of months ago, Fury was retired from professional boxing, having knocked out Dillian Whyte in front of 94,000 fans at Wembley Stadium.
‘The Gypsy King’ then made an unsurprising return to the ring, as he took on Derek Chisora in a trilogy bout on December 3 and won convincingly.
With the WBC world title in his possession, Fury now has the opportunity this year to unify with WBA, WBO and IBF champion, Oleksandr Usyk, in a battle for the undisputed heavyweight world titles.
Fury’s promoter, Bob Arum, recently told talkSPORT that both fighters have agreed to the bout, while Usyk’s manager Egis Klimas revealed that it will take place no later then March 4.
The only decision left to be made is the location and Arum said: “There’s a couple of places in the Middle East that have expressed big interest and made offers and of course there is the possibility of doing the fight in Wembley Stadium.”
Should Fury come through that bout there is another stellar match up waiting for him in 2023 against ‘The Juggernaut’ Joe Joyce, who recorded a career best win against Joseph Parker last year.
“We’re hopefully gonna see the biggest year of my career. 2023, we’re gonna get the big fights that the fans really crave,” Fury said after his win over Chisora.
As for Joshua, his career is very much up in the air at the moment, as he is without a confirmed permanent trainer and he has not recorded a victory in the ring since 2020.
Over the last two years, Joshua has suffered back-to-back losses against Usyk that have left him in a position where his next fight will most likely have no world titles on the line for the first time since 2015.
The Olympic gold medallist is currently in the USA on the hunt for a new trainer.
He split with his long-time coach, Rob McCracken, after his first loss against Usyk and he paired up with Robert Garcia, but that was once again an unsuccessful relationship.
Most recently, Joshua has been spending some time at Derrick James‘ gym, who works with Errol Spence Jr and Jermell Charlo.
Although, either way, the Brit has said he wants to be a ‘free spirit’ and not tie himself down to one trainer.
In terms of his next opponent, Joshua’s promoter, Eddie Hearn, has said that Dillian Whyte is the frontrunner to take on ‘AJ’ in a rematch of their 2015 clash, most likely in March.
Other options include Otto Wallin and Deontay Wilder, as ‘The Bronze Bomber’s’ manager, Shelly Finkel, explained that he has been in contact with Hearn regarding the potential fight, although as of yet no announcements have been made regarding Joshua’s future.
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