Frank Warren: Tyson Fury asking for warm-up fight before facing Anthony Joshua

By George Sessions, Press Association

Tyson Fury has instructed his team to arrange another warm-up fight before a ‘Battle of Britain’ with long-standing rival Anthony Joshua.

Fury ended a 14-month hiatus this month when he got the better of Arslanbek Makhmudov on points at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and subsequently traded verbal insults with a ringside Joshua.

It ramped up excitement ahead of an eagerly anticipated domestic bout which has been years in the making and this week Joshua signed a contract to finally fight Fury, but another potential spanner in the works has emerged.

The return of the Gypsy King was something special 🙌 pic.twitter.com/9O7OIQbcyR

— Queensberry Promotions (@Queensberry) April 12, 2026

Joshua was already set for a tune-up bout on July 25th with Albanian heavyweight Kristian Prenga, which Queensberry promoter Frank Warren suggested could “kill” any contest with Fury later in 2026 if an upset occurred.

However, Warren has confirmed Fury also intends to step back in the ring before he faces Joshua in a move which casts further doubt on the bout and increases the risk of an injury for either British heavyweight.

“I think he will probably want to be doing something in between, let’s see,” Warren said.

“AJ has got his fight. Tyson, I’m quite sure, will have a fight in between. That’s what he’s asking for and we’ll see where we go from there.”