Anthony Joshua's heavyweight unification superfight against Tyson Fury has yet to be set in stone, but it appears to be getting close to confirmation as Bob Arum revealed in an interview that all parties have settled on a location.
WBA, WBO and IBF champion Joshua and WBC titleholder Fury are both British, but the chances of the bout taking place domestically were dashed by the continued issues caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in the U.K.
In addition, Fury's promoters Arum and Frank Warren as well as Joshua's handler Eddie Hearn are looking at a lot of expenditure due to all of the sanctioning fees, plus WBO mandatory challenger Oleksandr Usyk and former Fury opponent Deontay Wilder possibly requiring financial compensation first.
That meant countries such as the United States, China, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia and Singapore were in the running due to their abilty to offer huge site fees for the rights to the heavily-anticipated clash.
And in an interview with Barbershop Conversations, Arum said the fighters would be set to earn close to $100 million apiece thanks to the chosen venue, though he did not disclose who had won the bidding war.
“We have a location, that’s true," said Arum. "We have a location and, as far as the date is confirmed, we haven’t zeroed in on a date.
“It could be as late as June because it would give more time to solve the coronavirus problem. By June, most people will be vaccinated, so it’s possible.
“And then we would do the fight, pay-per-view in the UK and pay-per-view early evening in the United States.”
Early evening in the U.S. would suggest that a Middle East nation has come to an agreement with the promoters involved, as the 2019 rematch between Joshua and Andy Ruiz Jr. — which saw 'AJ' regain his titles in Saudi Arabia — fell into a similar timeslot.
The likes of Saudi, Dubai and Abu Dhabi are also historically the areas most likely to spend the big bucks required to land both fighters close to a nine-figure payday.
“The Joshua vs Fury fight will earn each of the guys close to $100million," continued Arum. "Each of the guys.
“It is the biggest fight in history in the UK, not even close. Around the world it is the biggest fight that people wanna see.”
British fight fans will remain optimistic that the lucrative first fight will lead to a rematch at London's Wembley or Cardiff's Principality Stadium once the pandemic is finally over, with Joshua and Fury already agreeing in principle to a two-fight deal — or, more likely, a double rematch clause.