Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua is biggest heavyweight fight since Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield rivalry, says ex-champ
TYSON FURY and Anthony Joshua have been backed to create the biggest heavyweight fight since Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield’s rivalry.
The British rivals were nailed on for an undisputed blockbuster last August in Saudi Arabia.
But Fury, 33, was forced into a trilogy bout with Deontay Wilder, 36, which he dramatically won in round 11.
It left Joshua, 32, forced to fight Oleksandr Usyk, 35, two weeks prior which ended in a bitter, with the two now in line to rematch in July.
A win for AJ could put him back on track for the unification and tempt Fury out of the retirement he announced in April.
And former WBC champion Bermane Stiverne – who was twice beaten by Wilder – hailed it as a potentially historic fight.
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Stiverne, 43, told Planet Sport: “It would be a good fight, it would sell of course. It would be the biggest fight ever since Tyson-Holyfield.
“This is a fight that I don’t believe Joshua would prevail on this one.”
Tyson, now 55, was stunned by Holyfield, 59, in 1996 but their rematch a year later would infamously be remembered as the “Bite Fight.”
The bouts sold over a combined 3.5million pay-per-view sales and saw around $105m paid in purses between them.
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Fury confirmed his retirement after knocking out Dillian Whyte, 34, in front of 94,000 at Wembley.
And he later insisted challenging the winner between Joshua and Usyk for all the marbles does not interest him.
And Stiverne believes the Gypsy King can walk away knowing he was the best of the bunch, who could only be beaten by himself.
He said: “Right now, the only thing that can beat Fury is Fury.”