Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn has denied that Anthony Joshua has signed to fight Tyson Fury, responding directly to a weekend report from talkSPORT’s Gareth A Davies that claimed the blockbuster heavyweight bout was finalised and heading to Netflix.
Speaking on The Stomping Ground, Hearn left no room for interpretation.
“Completely untrue. There is absolutely nothing signed with Anthony Joshua to fight Tyson Fury next. There is nothing agreed.”
Hearn said no terms or financial numbers have been established, though he confirmed that conversations with Dr. Rakan and Sela representatives have recently resumed at an early stage to “revisit the plan.”
Where the Rumour Started
Gareth A. Davies reported over the weekend, on March 14th that the fight had been signed “in the background” with “the big money people” and would be broadcast on Netflix. Targeting a date in late 2026 or early 2027.
The claim gained traction due to long-standing interest in an all-British heavyweight showdown.
Hearn’s denial was specific. He did not dismiss the idea of a Fury fight entirely, only that any deal exists. The Matchroom boss acknowledged that “deep conversations” had reached an advanced stage in late 2025 before the trajectory changed.
The Lagos Crash and Joshua’s Timeline
Those talks were derailed by a car accident involving Anthony Joshua in Lagos, Nigeria, in December. The crash killed two members of Joshua’s close circle, Sina Ghami and Latif ‘Latz’ Ayodele. A planned return to the ring in February or March 2026 was postponed to allow Joshua time for physical and mental recovery.
As of mid-March, Hearn said Joshua is expected to enter training camp “imminently” for a comeback bout targeted for late summer, likely July, to regain sharpness before any superfight discussion advances further.
Fury Already Booked for April
Tyson Fury (34-2-1) is already in active camp for a confirmed bout against Arslanbek Makhmudov (21-2) on April 11 at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, a fight that will stream live on Netflix.
Fury returned from his second professional retirement in January 2026, having stepped away from the sport following back-to-back losses to Oleksandr Usyk in May and December 2024. He has publicly named Joshua, the winner of Fabio Wardley vs. Daniel Dubois, and a third Usyk fight as his primary targets after Makhmudov.
For any Fury-Joshua deal to materialise, both fighters would need to clear their respective returns first, Fury through Makhmudov, Joshua through a yet-to-be-announced summer opponent.
The Broadcast Wrinkle
The Netflix element of Davies’ report is where the commercial friction sits. Joshua signed a career-long partnership with Matchroom in 2021 and remains a core asset for DAZN. Fury, despite being promoted by Frank Warren’s Queensberry Promotions (which holds an exclusive deal with DAZN), was permitted to move to Netflix for the Makhmudov fight.
A signed Netflix-exclusive deal for Joshua would require navigating those existing broadcast commitments, a detail Hearn appeared to reference when dismissing the report’s plausibility.
What Happens Next
Fury fights Makhmudov on April 11. Joshua targets a July return. Conversations with Sela about a potential Fury-Joshua event have resumed, but at a stage Hearn described as having no agreed terms, no numbers, and no signatures. The fight remains a live commercial possibility, but the weekend’s reports ran well ahead of where negotiations actually stand.
