CARDIFF — Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua will finally meet in their long-awaited all-British heavyweight fight at Cardiff's Principality Stadium on 11 December, more than a decade after they last shared a ring in a sparring session in 2010. The bout will be broadcast globally on Netflix, and BBC Sport understands organisers are considering a late start in the early hours of Saturday morning in the UK to cater for audiences in the United States.
The event is being promoted as a collaboration between Saudi boxing powerbroker Turki Alalshikh's The Ring and UFC chief Dana White, who fronts Zuffa Boxing. "Two of the best heavyweights of this generation, finally in the ring together," Alalshikh said. "This will be one of the biggest fights in boxing history. I am very happy to make this fight happen for the fans." White added: "For more than a decade, boxing fans have been clamouring for the heavyweight showdown between Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua. Together, they bring 66 wins, 52 knockouts and multiple heavyweight world titles into the ring," and said, "On December 11, two of the biggest heavyweights of this generation finally collide - and the winner will take a significant place in heavyweight history."
The former two-time world champions had already signed contracts for the bout earlier this year, but the date and venue had yet to be confirmed. London's Wembley Stadium and New York's Madison Square Garden were the frontrunners before both presented issues and Cardiff emerged as the alternative. The Principality Stadium has hosted late-night boxing before, including Joe Calzaghe's fight with Mikkel Kessler in November 2007, which began at 01:00 GMT. Welsh Rugby Union and Cardiff Council officials welcomed the fight, saying it would reinforce the city's reputation for staging major events and could bring a significant economic boost, although some operational details still need to be finalised. Joshua, 36, had been pushing for the fight to take place in the UK and has got his wish. "Forever indebted to the UK public for their support of Anthony Joshua. We couldn't have got this over the line without you," his promoter Eddie Hearn said.
The precise timing has yet to be announced. Hearn has played down suggestions it could begin as late as 03:00 GMT, with a ringwalk around 01:00 or 02:00 GMT placing the fight at 20:00 or 21:00 respectively on the US east coast. There is precedent for UK events scheduled around American television. Ricky Hatton's victory over Kostya Tszyu at Manchester's MEN Arena in June 2005 began at about 02:00 local time for US broadcaster Showtime, and Calzaghe's unification fight against Jeff Lacy at the same arena was staged at a similar hour. Mixed martial arts has gone later — Michael Bisping's UFC title defence against Dan Henderson in Manchester in 2016 saw fighters walk to the octagon at about 04:45 local time, while UFC 304 in Manchester in 2024 began its main card at 03:00 BST with Briton Leon Edwards fighting Belal Muhammad in the main event just after 05:30.
Fury, 38, is yet to comment on the announcement, while Joshua posted on Instagram: "I am inspiring a generation," The pair will come face-to-face at a news conference in London on Wednesday, 30 September as the build-up begins. There was no official statement from Hearn or Fury's promoter Frank Warren in the official news release sent by Netflix, though Hearn had previously said he did not want White to be involved. The fight ends years of collapsed negotiations. In 2020 the two camps agreed the basis of a two-fight deal, in 2021 contracts were signed for an undisputed heavyweight contest only for Deontay Wilder's successful arbitration case to force Fury into a third fight with the American, and in 2022 Joshua accepted a 60-40 split to challenge Fury before that attempt also fell apart.