Anthony Joshua makes 'dream' Tyson Fury demand ahead of blockbuster fight
Anthony Joshua has made a fresh demand to Tyson Fury as they both return to the ring this weekend.
The pair of former world heavyweight champions have signed to fight one another in the future after Turki Alalshikh was able to thrash out an agreement for a November or December showdown.
But before then, both Joshua and Fury are in action this weekend. Fury takes on Mariusz Wach in front of just 1500 fans in Thailand on Friday, while Joshua locks horns with Kristian Prenga in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia the following day.
Joshua will be back in the ring for the first time since being involved in a car crash which claimed the lives of his two close friends.
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Both men are poised to finally meet in the squared circle if they come through their respective opponents but Joshua wants to fast-track their face-to-face to Saturday night providing he emerges victorious.
"A million percent. Dream come true. If I could dream ... I beat Prenga ... Bam, wow. Anthony Joshua, hand raised, and [then]: 'Bring in Tyson Fury to the ring,'" Joshua told The Ring, as per ESPN.
"Bringing that dream to reality would be amazing."
Joshua's idea comes as a surprise given he rejected Fury's invitation to join him in the ring back in April.
Fury beat Arslanbek Makhmudov at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in front of Joshua, who was sat ringside.
He got on the microphone and called for 'AJ' to get into the ring but the 37-year-old refused, claiming that contracts had not been signed as he called himself the landlord.
Joshua later said he was "not there for games" and was instead on a scouting mission.
This time around he's more than willing to have a face-off and feels that as a battle between two British greats, the fight should take place on UK soil at Wembley Stadium.
He continued: "It would be amazing. God willing I get through Saturday, everything I've worked on happens in the ring. What I say is what I do. I become victorious ... It would be amazing for it to be [in the UK]. Imagine that.
"That would be amazing. So, so beautiful. For all of us, the country. That's a dream. We're working towards bringing it to reality and it starts this Saturday."
Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua could take place in early hours in UK
Wembley has staged plenty of blockbuster boxing bouts over the years but Saudi boxing chief Alalshikh is lobbying for a major change for Fury vs Joshua.
He has confirmed he wants to attract a global audience by staging the fight in the early hours, with ringwalks at 2am GMT, 9pm ET and 6pm PT in the United States.
That would go against the Wembley curfew, which is typically 11pm on weekends.
Brent Council would need to give their approval, along with the Mayor of London.
However, according to City AM, Sadiq Khan has given the go-ahead and sources close to him told the outlet said that an early hours bout is "doable".
In a statement released earlier this month, a spokesperson for Khan said: “London is the sporting capital of the world and the Mayor is working to bring more of the world’s biggest events to the city.
“London has staged some of the biggest boxing events in recent history at Wembley Stadium, with record crowds of over 90,000 attending heavyweight contests including Anthony Joshua vs Daniel Dubois and Tyson Fury vs Dillian Whyte.
“Sadiq has made clear that London would be the perfect place to stage the long-awaited bout between Anthony Joshua vs Tyson Fury and the Mayor stands ready to support ambitions to bring the event to our capital as we build a better London for everyone.”
While Alalshikh said that he was told it "is not possible", sources close to the Mayor told the BBC that no discussions had taken place.
Topics: Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury
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