Prince Naseem Hamed is no longer convinced that Tyson Fury has the style, or at least the physical capabilities, to make Anthony Joshua look “silly”.
The two Brits are set to square off later this year, possibly in November, but must successfully complete their respective warm-up fights with no injuries.
First, Joshua will collide with Kristian Prenga – who he is heavily favoured to beat – in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on July 25.
But while he is facing a little-known heavyweight who, on paper, is well beneath his level, there are nonetheless doubts over the 36-year-old’s ability at this stage in his career.
He did, after all, suffer a devastating fifth-round stoppage defeat to Daniel Dubois in September 2024, while his only fight in 2025 resulted in a sixth-round finish over Jake Paul.
But Fury is perhaps not in his athletic prime, either, as his unanimous decision victory over Arslanbek Makhmudov in April gave some fans the impression of a fighter in decline.
In fact, many believe ‘The Gypsy King’ has not been the same since his trilogy with Deontay Wilder, which culminated in him scoring a hard-fought 11th-round stoppage in October 2021.
Because of this, British boxing legend ‘Naz’ has told talkSPORT that the Joshua fight is now more competitive than it would have been five or six years ago.
“Years and years ago, Tyson, for me, had this awkward style – this great boxing style – where he could make AJ look silly. Things have changed now.
“Tyson’s seemed to drop back a little bit, but you never know with Tyson Fury. Maybe one night he can just turn up and fight amazing, and bring back those old days of what he did to Wilder.
“Would it be unbelievable if I was to say [Fury-Joshua] could be a draw?”
While Fury has insisted that he will enter a warm-up fight in August, there has been no confirmation of an opponent, date or venue for the 37-year-old’s outing.