A big year ahead for Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury as ‘Gypsy King’ prepares for undisputed title fight with Oleksandr Usyk, while ‘AJ’ looks to bounce back from a tough 2022

Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua have long dominated the UK and world boxing scene, but 2023 could be a pivotal year for both men.

It was just a few months ago that Fury retired from professional boxing, after knocking out Dillian Whyte in front of 94,000 fans at Wembley Stadium.

‘The Gypsy King’ then made an unsurprising return to the ring, as he faced Derek Chisora ​​in a trilogy bout on December 3 and won convincingly.

With the WBC world title in his possession, Fury now has the opportunity this year to unite with WBA, WBO and IBF champion Oleksandr Usyk in a battle for the undisputed world heavyweight titles.

Fury’s promoter Bob Arum recently told talkSPORT that both fighters had agreed to the fight, while Usyk’s manager Egis Klimas revealed it would take place no later than March 4.

The only decision left to make is the venue and Arum said: “There are a few places in the Middle East that have expressed great interest and made offers and of course there is the possibility of doing the fight at the stadium of Wembley.”

Should Fury come to terms with this fight, another stellar matchup awaits him in 2023 against “The Juggernaut” Joe Joyce, who recorded a career-best win over Joseph Parker last year.

“We hope to see the biggest year of my career. 2023, we are going to have the big fights that the fans really want,” Fury said after his win over Chisora.

As for Joshua, his career is very up in the air at the moment as he is without a confirmed permanent coach and he hasn’t recorded a win in the ring since 2020.

Over the past two years, Joshua has suffered back-to-back losses to Usyk that have left him in a position where his next fight will most likely have no world title on the line for the first time since 2015.

The Olympic gold medalist is currently in the United States looking for a new coach.

He parted ways with longtime coach Rob McCracken after his first loss to Usyk and he partnered with Robert Garcia, but it was again an unsuccessful relationship.

More recently, Joshua has been spending time at the gym of Derrick James, who works out with Errol Spence Jr and Jermell Charlo.

Although, in any case, the Briton said he wanted to be a ‘free spirit’ and not be tied down to one coach.

As for his next opponent, Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn says Dillian Whyte is the favorite to face ‘AJ’ in a rematch of their 2015 clash, most likely in March.

Other options include Otto Wallin and Deontay Wilder, as ‘The Bronze Bomber’ manager Shelly Finkel explained he has been in touch with Hearn regarding the potential fight, although no announcement has yet been made. been made regarding Joshua’s future.