Joe Joyce has said he’s willing to face Tyson Fury – and even told the champion he should forget the undisputed bout with Oleksandr Usyk to make it happen.
The heavyweight division continues to intrigue and frustrate in equal measure. Fury has a voluntary defence of his WBC belt scheduled against Derek Chisora on December 3, and is expected to move straight into training camp for a fight with fellow-champion Usyk that would see all of the belts on the line.
However, in a recent interview, ‘The Gypsy King’ set a deadline of February for the Ukrainian, and said that if the fight didn’t happen then, he would give promotional stablemate, Joe Joyce, a shot.
Following Fury’s sort-of-call out, Joyce took to Twitter to confirm that he was interested in the Wembley scrap – joining Fury in criticising Usyk’s size.
“Pick on someone your own size Tyson. Iām fit and ready to go! Usyk is far too small for you. Iām a different kind of beast. Gypsy King vs Juggernaut.”
Pick on someone your own size Tyson. Iām fit and ready to go! Usyk is far too small for you. Iām a different kind of beast.
Gypsy King vs Juggernaut.š#THEJUGGERNAUT šš¾ https://t.co/Y1S6b3CseD— Joe Joyce (@JoeJoyceBoxing) November 22, 2022
It’s convenient timing, given many questioned why Joyce didn’t step in the ring when Fury was looking for an opponent for December 3 – which was made more confusing by the mixed messages from his team.
Still, ‘The Juggernaut’ earned his time off, and is certainly hurtling towards a title shot, whether that be Fury or Usyk.
As for undisputed, Usyk will be in attendance for Fury – Chisora, watching the action from the wings and analysing who fans hope will be his next opponent.
Should Fury come through as most expect him to, Saudi Arabia is said to have a keen interest in hosting a fight for all the heavyweight titles, and to crown an undisputed champion for the first time in the division since Lennox Lewis.