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Former WBC cruiserweight champion Tony Bellew has praised Anthony Joshua for the way he has handled negotiations for a potential all-British fight with Tyson Fury.
The pair have agreed to meet in the ring on December 3 in Cardiff in what is anticipated to be one of the biggest fights in British boxing history.
However, the Gypsy King sensationally claimed the fight was officially off on Monday after Joshua failed to sign his contract before the deadline of 5pm. Despite this, Matchroom Boxing and Queensberry Promotions are reportedly working hard behind the scenes to get the deal over the line.
Bellew, 39, is not surprised by Fury’s actions given the amount of attention he has received in recent weeks.
However, he has praised Joshua for keeping the negotiations professional despite Fury’s recent antics.
“I’m not surprised about the situation; Fury is a showman and he’s turning this into the Fury Show,” he told The Daily Mail. “Looking at the publicity around the fight, that’s not even an official fight yet, it’s madness.
“It’s on, it’s off… all I can see is that Joshua is keeping it professional. His camp has already stated that the contract couldn’t be signed on Monday or today. Fury knows this so it’s all in the name of publicity.
“At the end of the day, Tyson Fury has tried to face everybody and anybody. Anthony Joshua’s done the exact same thing, but with slightly less success. The thing with Joshua is, as Fury knows, when you back Joshua into a corner, he’ll face whoever whenever.
“Fury knows that Joshua is game, and he also knows that he wants to go ahead with the fight, but obviously, as we’ve heard, the paperwork around fights like this are significant, and important, and until all is ironed out an announcement can’t be made.
“So in the meantime, Fury has somehow decided to take matters into his own hands and start the build-up himself.”