Anthony Joshua offers to spar Tyson Fury for Deontay Wilder fight

ANTHONY JOSHUA has offered to be Tyson Furyโ€™s sparring partner if it helps his fellow Brit beat Deontay Wilder.

Joshua has been left frustrated in his attempts to lure WBC heavyweight champion Wilder into the ring as he bids to unify the division.

Joshua, who now holds the WBA, IBF and WBO belts following his victory over Andy Ruiz Jr last weekend, feels he has a better chance of landing a blockbuster unification showdown with Fury than with Wilder.

Fury faces a re-match with the American on February 22, having drawn their first encounter, and Joshua told Sky Sports News: โ€œI think honestly he might beat Wilder next time.

โ€œI think Fury would fight me quicker than Wilder would, so, if thatโ€™s the case, I want him to win. Imagine that fight on British soil.

โ€œIf Tyson needs me, Iโ€™ll go out and spar with him to get him ready for Wilder.โ€

anthony joshua

Responding to the offer on Instagram, Fury said: โ€œIโ€™ve just seen the video of Joshua on Sky Sports saying heโ€™d love to come and help me in camp and that Iโ€™d fight him quicker than Wilder, thatโ€™s for sure.

โ€œWhen I beat Wilder, I will fight you AJ, no problem.

โ€œI would love to have you in camp, mush. Really, really love to have you in camp, work out for this fight and give Deontay Wilder a proper beating.

โ€œI hope you mean it because Iโ€™d love to have you in the training camp with me.โ€

Nevertheless Joshua, 30, remains desperate for a mega-fight with Wilder which would see both men attempt to become the first undisputed heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis.

โ€œIt still puzzles me as to why itโ€™s so difficult to pin this man down,โ€ Joshua added.

โ€œThis is the man I need to pin down to get the last ring and conquer this division.

โ€œWhen heโ€™s ready, as I am, I would love to be here talking about Deontay Wilder and the keys to victory.

โ€œItโ€™s not about me, itโ€™s about the sport and the legacy. If he wants to create his legacy and he wants to be a future hall of famer, he needs to come and see us.

โ€œYouโ€™ve got the two lords of the rings here. The last one to unify, undisputed, the division. Iโ€™ve got four, heโ€™s got one. I just need one more.โ€

In the meantime Bulgarian Kubrat Pulev is the IBFโ€™s next mandatory challenger for Joshua, while the WBO has ordered the Londoner to fight Ukrainian Oleksandr Usyk.

โ€œPulev is a very tough athlete,โ€ said Joshua. โ€œHe knows what heโ€™s doing and anyone fighting for the championship is a dangerous fighter. My mindset? Seek and destroy.

โ€œUsyk is a great cruiserweight has moved up to be in with the big boys. He will be in my sights for around March or April, and heโ€™s a very credible opponent.

โ€œI want fighters like him on my record. Iโ€™ve been studying him already.โ€

And as for a potential third meeting with Ruiz Jr, the Mexican who stunned the boxing world by beating Joshua in June?

โ€œOne trillion per cent,โ€ he said. โ€œI always said Iโ€™d fight him in Tijuana, with his uncle as referee. Me and Andy will soon see each other in the ring again.โ€

TYSON FURY HAS LINKED UP WITH NEW TRAINER:

Tyson Fury has teamed up with Javan โ€˜Sugarโ€™ Hill following his amicable split from trainer Ben Davison.

Davison, who had worked with the 31-year-old boxer since 2017, announced on Twitter that they had parted ways, but insisted they are still friends.

Fury later revealed that he will now work under Hill, the nephew of the late trainer Emmanuel Steward.

tyson fury
Mikey Williams/Top Rank

Hill will prepare Fury for his heavyweight rematch with American WBC champion Deontay Wilder, which is set to be in February.

Fury had previously worked with Steward out of the Kronk gym in Detroit and used social media to post a picture of them both, along with Hill and former world champion Andy Lee, with the caption: โ€œGetting the old team back up and running.โ€

Davison said on Twitter: โ€œObviously itโ€™s not going to stop until thereโ€™s an answer, Tyson and myself had to both make decisions for our careers, which resulted in our working relationship coming to an end.

โ€œHowever, we remain friends and he will smash the dosser!โ€

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