Saudis provide major update on Anthony Joshua’s next opponent and Fury vs Usyk 2 date

Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk are set to clash on Saturday and later this year, with ‘AJ’ likely next

The timeline for Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk 2 and the winner’s planned fight with Anthony Joshua is becoming clearer.

Fury and Usyk will clash in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Saturday (18 May), to crown the first undisputed heavyweight champion in 24 years. The pair are then contracted to fight again later this year, with Saudi adviser Turki Al-Sheikh suggesting the rematch will take place in October.

Al-Sheikh doubled down on that plan on Wednesday, telling The MMA Hour: “We have the rematch, we want to do the rematch in the beginning of Riyadh Season this year, in October. That’s the deadline for us.”

Per ESPN, Fury vs Usyk 2 is lined up for 12 or 13 October, while Al-Sheikh clarified Joshua’s place in the heavyweight picture.

The Saudi adviser previously said Joshua could fight the winner of Daniel Dubois vs Filip Hrgovic or Deontay Wilder vs Zhilei Zhang – with both of those bouts set for 1 June in Riyadh – at Wembley in September.

A Saudi plan to have Wilder fight on 3 August in Los Angeles, however, has ruled the American out as Joshua’s next foe.

“It has to be the [Fury vs Usyk] rematch in October, and after that, my plan in the first quarter [of 2025] is to have Joshua fight the winner [of Fury vs Usyk 2],” said Al-Sheikh.

“We have Joshua’s fight in September, it depends on the result on 1 June, the Hrgovic fight – because now we love Wilder vs Jared Anderson on the card in Los Angeles.

“I just finished the card of Wembley, it will be a crazy card.”

Fury will carry the WBC heavyweight belt into the Kingdom Arena on Saturday, while Usyk is unified champion, having taken those titles from Joshua in the first of two wins over the Briton.

Joshua’s compatriot Fury, 35, and Ukraine’s Usyk, 37, are both undefeated. Joshua is riding a four-fight win streak, having beaten Jermaine Franklin, Robert Helenius and Otto Wallin 2023 before stopping Francis Ngannou in March.

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