Mayor gives green light for 4am Joshua vs Fury fight at Wembley
Sadiq Khan has given the green light for a 4am start to the Battle of Britain boxing bout between Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury if it is held at Wembley Stadium.
Sources close to the Mayor of London told City PM it is “doable” in a move that would make for TV-friendly viewing times in both the United States, which is currently favourite to host the fight, and the Middle East, where much of the sport’s current funding base is situated.
The most likely venue in the capital for the long-awaited clash would be Wembley, having staged a fight between Daniel Dubois and Joshua that attracted 96,000 fans, but the national football stadium has a 11pm curfew.
Any extension to that would require approval from the local Brent Council, who said “any changes to would have to be assessed by the stadium’s safety advisory group of which Brent Council is a partner”.
The much-touted fight would finally see Joshua and Fury clash in a bout some see as already past its prime billing, but there is a keenness among fans to host the fight in the UK and avoid the States.
There have been talks surrounding the fight taking place at either the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium or Cardiff’s Principality Stadium, but public transport would favour Wembley, given that the running of the night tube on the Jubilee Line would aid in dispersing fans at 5am.
Las Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium and the SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles have also been mooted as potential Stateside venues for the fight. The US is believed to still hold the upper hand in winning the hosting rights for the fight.
Joshua and Fury set for mid-night clash?
Boxing impresario Turki Alalshikh said on social media this week: “Hopefully a positive statement from the Mayor of London’s office about a later start time if Fury vs Joshua is in London, as so far we have been told it is not possible.”
It is understood that Alalshikh and others are yet to get in contact with the Mayor’s office.
A spokesperson for the Mayor of London said: “London is the sporting capital of the world and the Mayor is working to bring more of the world’s biggest events to the city.
“London has staged some of the biggest boxing events in recent history at Wembley Stadium, with record crowds of over 90,000 attending heavyweight contests including Anthony Joshua vs Daniel Dubois and Tyson Fury vs Dillian Whyte.
“Sadiq has made clear that London would be the perfect place to stage the long-awaited bout between Anthony Joshua vs Tyson Fury and the Mayor stands ready to support ambitions to bring the event to our capital as we build a better London for everyone.”