Would Tyson Fury come out of retirement to fight Joshua?

Speculation is beginning to swirl in the boxing world that Tyson Fury may come out of retirement to fight the winner of the Anthony Joshua vs Oleksandr Usyk rematch.

With the pair set to fight on August 20th, and the Ukrainian heavy-weight Usyk a -200 favorite to defeat Joshua again, the prospect of Fury coming out of retirement for one last fight would be a real temptation.

It would be a match that solidifies Tyson Fury’s legacy once and for all—the question is, does he want it?

A track record of returning

Boxing is a sport known for athletes making comebacks; its sporadic, climactic structure plays well for fighters that ebb and surge in their careers.

None more so than Tyson Fury.

With his humble background leading to the moniker of ‘the Gypsy King’, Tyson Fury worked his way up through the amateur ranks to become a real heavy-weight contender in the 2010s. His skilful technical boxing technique, combined with raw size and power led him to be a devastating opponent.

In 2016, the Brit reached boxing’s pinnacle, defeating Vladmir Klitschko in a heavy-weight championship match, and unifying the heavy-weight titles. However, following this ascent, Fury descended into alcoholism, drugs and mental health issues, putting on hundreds of pounds and forfeiting his titles.

However, in 2020, Fury made a comeback for the ages, getting himself back into shape mentally and physically, and regaining the WBC title from Deontay Wilder in February 2020. Two years and several title defences later, and Fury is once again retired, stating that he has nothing more to achieve in boxing.

Whether this lasts, remains to be seen.

The fight that everyone wants to see

Many people are seeing the up coming fight between Anthony Joshua and Oleksandr Usyk as Joshua’s last shot at being a competitive heavy-weight boxer.

A few years ago, he was seen as the future of the sport, the potential to go down as one of the greats.

However, getting thoroughly outboxed by Usyk last year has significantly dented this legacy. If Joshua was to lose again, many do not see a path back for him from here.

Regardless, whoever wins this fight in August will be seen as the man to beat in heavy-weight boxing—anyone who defeats them, will undeniably be the best boxer in the world.

Cue Tyson Fury.

There’s no denying Fury has been tempted out of retirement in the past with a point to prove; creating and defending a legacy is something that matters to him.

So, would he be lured out of retirement one more time to fight the winner of Joshua vs Usyk?

An unlikely fight for the ages

According to Sky Sport, there’s no indication for Fury yet that he would come out of retirement.

“People have asked me that a lot. We’ve been told to stay down, Fury’s retired. He hasn’t said he’s coming out of retirement,” Top Rank president Todd duBoef told Sky Sports.

Ultimately, it comes down to Fury’s mindset.

If he feels that he has a point to prove, or can further solidify his legacy with this fight, there’s every chance he’ll come out of retirement. However, he has quite clearly in the past stated that he has little intrinsic desire to fight anymore, and isn’t motivated by money.

With Joshua a +175 underdog to win the fight, it’s unlikely the British public would see a fight for the ages between their two champions.

But it would be remiss to rule that out just yet.