Tyson Fury told to give Anthony Joshua respect as Amir Khan makes stance clear

Tyson Fury should show respect to Anthony Joshua by agreeing to a heavyweight showdown with him, according to former boxer Amir Khan. Fury hung up his gloves in January of this year after the 36-year-old made the shock decision to retire just weeks after suffering a second successive loss to Oleksandr Usyk.

Fury has retired more than once in his illustrious career, only to then later return to the ring, and Khan believes that the 36-year-old should consider stepping into the squared circle once more in order to give the British public the fight that they have been craving for years. The former WBA title holder also believes that Joshua is the catalyst for Fury's high-profile success and therefore is owed the clash.

"There’s only one fight for him [Fury] and it’s the Anthony Joshua fight," Khan, 38, said to Spinbit "Because both fighters are massive names in the UK and maybe he should give Anthony Joshua that fight to the UK public.

"If you think about it, how did Tyson Fury get a massive name in boxing? It was because he was always interlinked with Joshua. He has to give him that respect and because he was linked with Joshua, who was such a superstar, he helped Tyson Fury become the name he is, especially in the UK market."

Fury previously called time on his career in 2017, amid a dispute with UK Anti-Doping, before making his comeback in 2018. He also retired after beating Dillian Whyte in April 2022, returning later that year.

Meanwhile, Joshua, 35, has been out of the ring since September's stunning defeat to IBF title-holder Daniel Dubois. Joshua, as with Fury, is a two-time heavyweight world champion.

A huge bout between two iconic stars of British boxing has been touted for several years. However, the fight has never managed to hurdle the negotiation stage.

Fury's co-promoter, Bob Arum, now believes that the much-anticipated face-off is now nothing but a pipe dream, after claiming that the 'Gypsy King' will not return to boxing.

"If I was a betting man I would say he will never fight again," Arum told the 5 Live Boxing podcast with Steve Bunce. "Marvin Hagler had an expression - 'a rich guy who goes to bed wearing silk pyjamas doesn't get up in the morning to do road work'.

"Tyson, really, I don't think wants to get up in the morning and do road work and go through the experience of having to train when economically he doesn't have to do it any more."

Yet, Eddie Hearn, who represents AJ, is confident Fury vs Joshua could soon be a reality. The 45-year-old even claimed the generational clash is just a phone-call away from materialising.

"This is the kind of fight that probably gets made over a DM between the two or a text or a call," Hearn told BBC Sport. Neither of them are champions.

"Both are huge names, both at the back ends of their careers, but more importantly both are still relatively in their prime. It's like 'look, do you fancy it?' That's it. And then, bang, it's done."

Hearn is also certain Joshua will fight again by the end of 2025 but has only "one-to-three fights" left before he also retires. Joshua currently boasts a record of 28 wins and four losses. Fury has racked up 34 wins, one draw and two defeats his his career.