Fury hopes to 'give fans what they want' with Joshua showdown

In this Feb. 22, 2020, file photo, Tyson Fury, of England, lands a right to Deontay Wilder, left, during a WBC heavyweight championship boxing match in Las Vegas. [AP]

Tyson Fury said he was eager to give British boxing fans what they want by fighting Anthony Joshua for the undisputed world heavyweight title but he said the duo must focus on their immediate opponents to make such a match happen.

Fury won the WBC title in Las Vegas three months ago with a seventh-round stoppage of Deontay Wilder. Joshua defeated Mexican-American Andy Ruiz Jr in a December rematch in Saudi Arabia to reclaim his IBF, WBA, WBO and IBO titles.

Joshua's next fight is with mandatory IBF challenger Kubrat Pulev, but their bout scheduled for June 20 was postponed due to the COVID-19 crisis. Fury will take on Wilder in a rematch later this year.

"If I get knocked out by Wilder, then it won't be on, will it," Fury told Sky Sports.

"It'll be another fight with Wilder... If he loses to Pulev, so close, but so far. In heavyweight boxing, you can never count your chickens before they hatch, so one fight at a time, one victory at a time.

Fury said a meeting with Joshua had the potential to be the biggest match since Britons Lennox Lewis and Frank Bruno fought in 1993.

"All going well, god willing, we get on the big fight with me and Joshua, the all-British showdown, and I can give the fans what they want to see, especially the British fans."