Tyson Fury Calls Out Oleksandr Usyk Amid Joshua Showdown
Tyson Fury has lit the fuse again.
With an all-British blockbuster against Anthony Joshua supposedly next on the schedule, the WBC heavyweight champion has publicly declared he is “looking for a new opponent” for November – and has turned his attention straight back to Oleksandr Usyk.
Fury v Joshua: Signed, but still not sealed
Both Fury and Joshua have already signed individual contracts for their long-awaited showdown, a fight British boxing has been demanding for years. The target remains November.
Yet the bout sits in limbo. The sticking point is not money, nor the opponents, but the map. Organisers are pushing to take the event to the United States, chasing the global stage and American dollars, while Joshua wants the fight at Wembley Stadium, the spiritual home of modern British boxing and a venue that could sell out in hours.
That tug-of-war has slowed any official announcement. Into that vacuum, Fury has stepped with typical volume.
Instagram blast and a new target
In an expletive-laden Instagram video, Fury claimed Joshua is backing out of the contest and used that claim as a springboard to call out the man who beat him twice.
“This will only lead me to a fight with Oleksandr Usyk,” Fury said, framing a potential third meeting with the undisputed champion as his preferred route if the Joshua talks collapse.
He then turned his fire on both men at once, accusing Joshua of being “weak minded” and labelling Usyk his “trainer” and “sensei”, suggesting the Ukrainian mastermind is the one guiding Joshua’s decisions behind the scenes.
Usyk, of course, is the only man to have solved Fury twice in the ring, edging both fights on the scorecards. Fury acknowledged that blunt fact.
“You got the decisions last time, fair play to you,” he said, tipping his hat before immediately trying to drag Usyk back into the fire.
“Let’s run it back in November”
Fury’s message then shifted from taunt to challenge. He called on Usyk to face him again later this year, laying down a clear timeline and daring the Ukrainian to respond.
“Good luck to you, let’s do it again. Let’s run it back in November. The ball is now in your court… do you want to fight me this year, 2026, or are you calling quits? Let me know because I am now looking for a new opponent.”
The wording was classic Fury: part provocation, part negotiation, and part theatre. He framed Usyk as the man with the power to decide his next move, while painting Joshua as the one retreating from the spotlight.
Heavyweight chess at the top of the division
On paper, Fury’s next step remains Joshua. The contracts are signed. The appetite is enormous. The location is the last major hurdle.
Yet Fury’s outburst underlines the fragility of even the biggest deals in heavyweight boxing. One delay, one disagreement over a stadium, and the Gypsy King is already threatening to change dance partners.
Usyk, having already beaten both Fury and Joshua, now finds himself courted again by the man he pushed to the brink twice. A third fight would be another colossal event, but it would also reshape the path Joshua has been preparing for.
For now, the heavyweight division hangs on two decisions: where Fury–Joshua lands, and whether Usyk feels compelled to answer a call he has already answered twice.
