Ricky Hatton has weighed in on Tyson Fury’s recent retirement announcement, hinting he could be lured back into the ring by a lucrative bout with Anthony Joshua. Fury decided to walk away from the sport in January, shortly after his second defeat to Oleksandr Usyk.
Before deciding to hang up his gloves, the former heavyweight champion had been linked with a showdown against Joshua. However, this isn’t Fury’s first stint away from the sport, having announced his retirement in 2013 after a fight with David Haye was scrapped and again after his victory over Dillian Whyte in 2022. Boxing icon Hatton believes the ‘Gypsy King’ may rescind his decision if he receives the right offer for an epic clash with longtime rival Joshua.
Reflecting on Fury’s history of retirement talk, Hatton said to Sky Sports: “Tyson’s retired before. It just so happens they were trying to make the Joshua fight. They were trying to make it for 10 years and it looks like they’re still not going to make it now Tyson’s retired.
“But I would take that retirement with a pinch of salt knowing Tyson. If he gets offered the right money, the right purse for the AJ fight, knowing Tyson as I do, I think he’d jump at it.”
Hatton has a close bond with Fury, having helped the former world champion get back in shape during his three-year spell away from the ring following his masterclass display against Wladimir Klitschko in 2015. Before Fury announced his retirement, Hatton admitted that a fight with Joshua would be the perfect way for the ‘Gypsy King’ to end his career.
“Tyson has had a great career; AJ has had a fantastic career, but both are showing signs of miles on the clock but it’s a fight we have always wanted to see,” Hatton told Vegas Insider. “You would still pay all day long to watch the fight.
“Let them fight each other and then I would like to see them both retire then as they have nothing more to prove as a friend. If they have that last send-off fight as we’ve all been waiting to see, they can then hang the gloves up and have done us proud.”
In other boxing news, Oleksandr Usyk is eyeing a rematch with Daniel Dubois following their contentious fight in August 2023, despite Joseph Parker being the mandatory challenger for Usyk’s WBO title.
Meanwhile, Anthony Joshua is on the hunt for a new opponent after his knockout defeat by Dubois at Wembley Stadium, which ended his four-fight winning streak. Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn has revealed a list of potential opponents for Joshua’s next fight.
“Daniel Dubois still [is the frontrunner]. In an ideal world, he will fight Fury, if not Dubois,” Hearn said. “There is also Joseph Parker, who I think would be a great fight, there is Agit Kabayel and Deontay Wilder, obviously, His Excellency (Alalshikh) has stated he would love to see that fight.
“We will have to see, but really the talks are imminent with AJ now to lock in that opponent for the summer.”
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