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Barry Hearn, the founder of Matchroom Sport, expects Anthony Joshua vs. Tyson Fury to eventually come off.
The two British heavyweights were in serious talks earlier last year. Their negotiations fell apart after Deontay Wilder was victorious at an arbitration to force a third meeting with Fury.
They are now scheduled for high profile fights in the coming months.
Fury will make a mandatory defense of his WBC title against Dillian Whyte on April 23 at Wembley Stadium in London.
And Joshua will attempt to reclaim the IBF, IBO, WBA, WBO heavyweight belts from Oleksandr Usyk, on a date in June or July.
If Fury and Joshua both win, they would be in position for a potential undisputed showdown in the fall.
“I believe it will happen. I believe the inevitability of what is being created, the demand for those fights, means eventually it has to happen. I just don’t know when. We should have had it already. But then we said that about Mayweather-Pacquiao and Khan-Brook for years and it happened 4-5 years too late,” Hearn told The Sun.
“I think Joshua v Fury will happen. Pride and money will make sure it does. The money they are earning is so vast that sooner or later getting punched in the face isn’t so appealing. However much money is involved. I’d imagine it should happen in the next 12-18 months – if it doesn’t I don’t think it will ever happen.
“Of course, these people won’t be rushing to the retirement home for the next few years. We are creating a group that is similar to what we saw in the American days of Ali-Frazier-Foreman-Spinks.”
While Hearn gives Whyte a shot at pulling off the upset, he admits Fury is a very solid favorite to win the bout.
“Whyte is the outsider. He has a chance. Fury is a clever fighter. If Whyte can turn this into a street fight, he will win. If it turns into a Tyson Fury fight, which he is clever to do, then he’ll outbox him over 12 rounds and wins comfortably on points,” Hearn said.
“It’s not a 50-50. It’s a 65-35 fight with Fury the favorite. But a 50-1 shot just won the Grand National! So Whyte has more than a squeak in this.”