Former two-weight world champion Billy Joe Saunders believes one heavyweight has the upper hand in a “battle of the old man” between Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua.
The two Brits are set to collide later this year, yet it remains to be seen whether their long-awaited showdown lands on the proposed date of November 20.
Not only that, but it seems the venue is up in the air following several weeks of uncertainty over whether the fight takes place at Madison Square Garden, New York.
According to promoter Eddie Hearn, Joshua’s contract states the event must be staged in the UK while Fury, it appears, did not outline any preference over the location in his original agreement.
The 38-year-old therefore insists that he has no issue with fighting at Madison Square Garden, where Netflix and event financiers Sela are hoping the contest can be held.
As for the fight itself, many have made Fury a clear favourite following his seventh-round stoppage of Mariusz Wach last month, while ‘AJ’ was twice dropped by Kristian Prenga – before scoring a second-round finish – in his particular warm-up bout that same weekend.
Speaking with talkSPORT, Saunders maintained his allegiance to ‘The Gypsy King’ while admitting that Joshua remains a dangerous puncher.
“We all know it’s a bit late. Are we going to see who really is the true best in this fight? They didn’t fight eight-ten years ago, so what we’re going to see, now, is the battle of the old man.
“I don’t think it’s about who trains the hardest, who looks the fittest [or] who’s in brilliant shape; it’s gonna be about who uses their brain and just sails through.
“I’m backing Tyson. I know AJ didn’t look too good in his last fight, but he still got the knockout. And he showed he’s still got that finishing punch.”
Saunders went on to critique Fury’s performance against Wach, saying he was “open to the right hand”, but is ultimately backing his friend’s “boxing ability” against Joshua.
