5 Tyson Fury fights which didn’t happen from Anthony Joshua to David Haye

World heavyweight champion Fury has a glittering CV that includes the likes of Deontay Wilder, Wladimir Klitschko and Dillian Whyte, but he’s missed a few big chances along the way

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Fury confirms retirement plans after stopping Whyte

Tyson Fury has had no shortage of big fights throughout his glittering career, and if he truly is retired, he’ll go down as an all-time great heavyweight.

He’s won every belt there is at world level, beaten the odds on a number of occasions and taken out some major names during his run to the pinnacle of the boxing world. Not Derek Chisora, Wladimir Klitschko or Deontay Wilder on three occasions could take a victory from the ‘Gypsy King’, and he will leave the sport with an undisputed legacy.

However, there were a few fights which passed him by during his run to the top of the sport. Even with a late push made after coming out of retirement last year, David Haye was never able to make a fight between the pair materialise, and of course it now seems he’ll never get to settle his domestic rivalry with Anthony Joshua.

We took a look at some of the major fights Fury missed out on during his career due to cancellations or late schedule changes…

1. Anthony Joshua

Last summer, it appeared that we would finally get to see Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua for the undisputed heavyweight title. The deal was done, a date was set and on August 14 the fight was all but signed.

Fury and Joshua were set to make tens of millions to square off in Saudi Arabia, and work was about to begin on a purpose-built arena for the show. But at the eleventh hour, Deontay Wilder stepped in and forced through a trilogy fight in court with an arbitration case.

Eddie Hearn, Joshua’s promoter, was stunned that Fury and his team didn’t really attempt to organise a step aside deal, and the fight was postponed while the Manchester native took care of business with Wilder. In the meantime, Joshua was ordered to face Oleksandr Usyk in a mandatory defence, and lost his belts which cost fans the chance of seeing a dream fight.

2. Oleksandr Usyk

Once Usyk had thrown the cat amongst the pigeons in the heavyweight division, he emerged as a legitimate contender to face Fury in what would have been another massive fight. The Ukrainian is considered the pound-for-pound No.1, and after handily beating Joshua in London, there were real discussions as to who would win this fight.

And talks were held to make an undisputed fight happen between the pair earlier this year. Saudi officials again came in with a mega money offer, that would have included step aside deals for both Joshua and Dillian Whyte, who had contractually obligated fights with Usyk and Fury respectively.

However, the deal was never able to materialise and Fury ended up taking on Whyte in front of a record-breaking 93,000-person crowd at Wembley Stadium before retiring from the sport.

The bout would have been fascinating as Fury admitted that he struggled to deal with ex-cruiserweight champion Steve Cunningham more than any other opponent in his professional career. Usyk is similarly small for the weight, and a much better technical boxer that could have possibly dethroned Fury.

3. Wladimir Klitschko 2

Fury famously defeated Wladimir Klitschko to end the Ukrainian’s reign atop the heavyweight division and become unified heavyweight champion back in 2015. He won all but the WBC belt by defeating Klitschko in Germany and established himself as the world’s top fighter in the division.

However, he was contractually obligated to face the Ukrainian again, which was set up to take place at the Manchester Arena on July 9, 2016. That fight was moved due to a Fury injury sustained in June, with a new date set for October.

However, Fury’s issues with mental health and drug abuse caused him to take a few years away from the boxing world as he plunged into a deep depression. By the time he had returned in the summer of 2018, Klitschko had been knocked out by Anthony Joshua in his next title effort, and hung up the boxing gloves. The rematch never happened.

4. David Haye

On multiple occasions before his world heavyweight title win, Fury was set to face the iconic cruiserweight and heavyweight champion David Haye. Haye had successfully moved up in weight and won the belt at heavyweight, but lost his belt to Wladimir Klitschko.

He was looking to get back in title contention after having stopped Derek Chisora, and was set to face Fury at the Manchester Arena on September 28. Haye put together a dream team of sparring partners that included future champion Deontay Wilder and Croatian wonder-kid Filip Hrgovic.

However, the sparring was a little too good, and Haye ended up getting badly cut during one of his final sessions, cancelling the fight. He pulled out of the rescheduled date as well, and despite making a play for the fight last September, it now seems it will never happen.

5.. David Price

After Price comfortably won their meeting in the amateurs, there was always interest in seeing him and Tyson Fury in the paid ranks.

At the 2006 ABAs Price defeated Fury 22-8 and years later it seemed as though they were on a collision course for a British and Commonwealth title fight. After Price defeated Audley Harrison within a round, Fury cut his infamous ‘plumber from Liverpool’ promo, and it seemed they would eventually scrap.

But the fight never materialised, and Price retired at the age of 38 never having fought Fury in the professional game after years of build.