Tyson Fury has announced that the winner of Anthony Joshua’s clash with Francis Ngannou will face whoever prevails out of him and Oleksandr Usyk.
Joshua faces Ngannou in Riyadh on Friday, while Fury’s rearranged bout with Usyk goes ahead on May 18.
However, the Gypsy King has revealed that Joshua or Ngannou would have to wait until after he and Usyk have a rematch.
Fury announced the news in a video posted on Queensberry Promotions social media accounts today, following a discussion on Tuesday with His Excellency Turki Alashikh – who has been the mastermind behind the huge fights that have been taking place in Saudi Arabia.
Speaking about Joshua’s bout with Ngannou, he said: ‘It’s a good fight but Turki (Alalshikh), I was talking with him last night about it and he said the winner of this fight, will get the winner of you and Usyk.
‘After me and Usyk fight and have a rematch, then the winner of this will get a shot at that.
‘So me and Usyk have two fights lined up this year. So the winner of that fight will get to fight the winner of this fight. So there’s a lot on the line.’
Fury and Usyk’s long-awaited undisputed heavyweight title clash had been due to go ahead last month, until the Gypsy King suffered a cut in training.
They now square off on May 18, though the date of any rematch has not been determined.
There could also be the question of whether should Fury and Usyk share a win apiece in their two bouts whether they conclude the series with a trilogy.
Fury, who narrowly escaped a shock upset loss to Ngannou back in October, is expected to watch Joshua’s bout with the former UFC star from the front row on Friday.
His comments come after Joshua said that a dream British heavyweight showdown is ‘in the pipeline’.
When asked if he would fight Fury on Good Morning Britain, Joshua said: ‘It is the golden question, I’d say sooner rather than later.
‘It’s in the pipeline, it’s been bubbling for a long time and it has to happen.
‘We are with you guys. We’re talking about it, it’s definitely going to happen sooner rather than later – mark my words.’
When asked for more information on what he means by the fight being in the pipeline, he added: ‘Not in depth like that (finding a location and date for the fight) but there’s a map.
‘For example, someone would say ‘these are the checkpoints’ and if I can complete these checkpoints then Fury’s part of my journey and I’m part of his I’m sure as well – it would be silly not to.’
