Joe Joyce believes that whatever the result of Tyson Fury’s undisputed heavyweight clash with Oleksandr Usyk, the pair will fight again.
Fury vs. Usyk is set to go ahead in February and will likely be the biggest payday of either fighters’ career, and could well prove to be the most lucrative fight of 2024 even at this early stage.
A rematch could go ahead in order for the pair to double their money before the year is out, though it is likely they will vacate at least one of the belts they win in order to avoid a mandatory defence getting in the way of the second event.
Fury’s last fight was a shockingly tight win over former UFC fighter Francis Ngannou, that saw the WBC champion squeeze through on the cards, in a decision win that many observers disagreed with.
Usky, meanwhile, fought in August in Poland to beat challenger Daniel Dubois.
Joyce, a WBO interim champion until he lost back-to-back fights with Zhilei Zhang, had been in the running to challenge for a title fight but may have to wait for a chance to get a shot.
Speaking to Betway about the upcoming megafight, he was unable to pick a favourite, but believed there would be a rematch come what may.
He said: “This is the fight everyone wants to see, and I thought it was going to happen a lot sooner but then the Francis Ngannou fight came. Tyson Fury is taller and has a longer range, but Usyk throws more shots, is more skilful in the southpaw stance and it is a 50/50 fight. I’m not sure who will win but there will be a rematch.
“I think Francis Ngannou getting the full knockdown beat Fury and he looked good, but I don’t think they would give it to him anyway because it would blow the Oleksandr Usyk fight out the water, but it could’ve easily gone to Ngannou. Francis started boxing first before the UFC and he has shown he is at a good level, hits hard and can box.”