After another scintillating year of boxing in 2021, the heavyweight scene has headed into the New Year in good shape with the prospect of some eagerly-anticipated bouts set to take place over the next 12 months.
The one fight on every boxing fan’s lips though is of course the all-British mega match-up between Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua.
The two heavyweights were set to meet in the ring in 2021, however a court ruling ensured Fury was required to fight Deontay Wilder for a third time bringing an end to any chances of the Gypsy King’s £200million bout with Joshua.
And AJ”s hopes of a Fury fight also took a huge blow for obvious reasons.
However, a new year now brings new opportunities. So, will 2022 finally be the year Britain’s two top heavyweights finally face off?
Like any marquee heavyweight fight, there are plenty of complications that could stand in the way of the all-British blockbuster, however the fight is definitely not out of the equation.
After defending his WBC world title in October, Fury’s first challenge in 2022 will most definitely not be Joshua, as he is set to take on mandatory challenger Dillian Whyte.
As well as this AJ has a priority of his own before an all-British matchup, as he sets his sights on a rematch with Ukrainian rival Oleksandr Usyk.
Joshua dramatically lost all three of his heavyweight titles to Usyk last September, after he was convincingly beaten on points on home soil in London in their initial bout.
The Englishman however will get the chance to redeem himself – and his titles – after initiating the rematch clause, which is expected to take place in April.
Of course if Joshua does claim his former belts back from Usyk it seems the next logical stop for the 32-year-old would of course be to take on Fury, who currently holds the WBC title.
However a big complication that could well stop the chances of the all-British blockbuster in its tracks is if Joshua loses to Usyk for a second time.
Defeat would once again drop AJ right down the pecking order. Fury has a history of wanting to fight the sport’s best, and if Usyk is the man who holds WBA (Super), IBF, WBO belts then he would most likely be the Gypsy King’s next target.
Fury himself has already openly admitted he would like to take on the Ukrainian fighter, and his camp reportedly offered Team Joshua a fee to step aside and let the Gypsy King be the man who challenges Usyk this April.
Whilst Joshua has supposedly turned this offer down, it may not have been all bad for British boxing fans, as Fury’s promoter Bob Arum revealed that his fighter would then have opted to fight AJ after taking on Usyk if the step-aside offer was agreed.
He told iFL TV: “If Joshua decides not to exercise his rematch against Usyk and decides to step aside, the fight we would like to make is between Usyk and Fury.
“Then Joshua can fight the winner of the undisputed fight. That’s what Tyson would like. And I represent Tyson. That is his preference.”
Another aspect that could well work in the favour of the potential British-bout’s chances is the Gypsy King’s reported 2022 schedule.
Of course Fury fights have been few and far between in recent years, no doubt down to the implications of his agreement with Wilder, as well as the impact of the Covid pandemic.
However, it seems the 33-year-old is set to up his outings this calendar year according to co-promoter Arum, who revealed Fury is planning to fight ‘at least three times’ in the next 12 months.
He told TalkSport: “What I would like to see, and this is what he would like to see, is getting in the ring at the end of February or March and doing at least three fights in 2022.
“Hopefully that is how it will all roll out, Fury is ready to fight anybody.”
It is expected that the bout in ‘February or March’ will be against mandatory challenger Whyte, leaving at least two vacant spots which, looking at the current heavyweight scene, point towards the direction of Usyk and of course Joshua.
Whilst there are plenty of ifs and buts surrounding the Fury-Joshua match up, the one thing the numerous implications do highlight is that 2022 is set to be a bumper year of heavyweight boxing.
It is clear that Fury’s result against Whyte and Joshua’s against Usyk could well be key to setting up the British bout.
However those results turn out though, the fact both Joshua and Fury remain arguably the two biggest names in the division seemingly puts the fights chances in good stead for the near future.