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Tyson Fury has confirmed Madison Square Garden as the venue for his long-awaited heavyweight showdown with Anthony Joshua, with the exact date still to be announced.
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Joshua was dropped twice by Kristian Prenga in the opening round before recovering to stop the Albanian in the second.
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Fury’s stunned reaction to the knockdowns, combined with his recent criticism of Joshua, has raised questions over whether the former champion has identified a weakness he can exploit.
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Former heavyweight contender David Adeleye believes Fury would have been encouraged by what he saw from Joshua.
September 03, (THEWILL) — For years, Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua have traded insults, predictions and promises without ever sharing a ring.
Now, with Madison Square Garden confirmed as the stage for their long-awaited heavyweight showdown, Fury may finally have something more useful than words: a recent performance from Joshua that he can study.
Joshua’s July meeting with Kristian Prenga was supposed to be another step towards the biggest fight of his career.
Instead, it produced a dramatic two-round thriller that left the former two-time world champion on the canvas twice before he turned the fight around.
Anthony Joshua knocked out Kristian Prenga 😳
pic.twitter.com/PblYTaxeNA— OLAMIDE 🌸💖 (@Olamide0fficial) July 26, 2026
Joshua eventually stopped Prenga in the second round, but the victory came with a warning attached. He can be hurt.
And Fury appeared to notice. Fury could hardly believe what he was seeing
When Saudi boxing chief Turki Alalshikh shared footage of Joshua’s fight on Instagram, Fury’s response was strikingly brief.
“Wow wtf.”
That was Fury’s immediate reaction after watching Joshua hit the canvas twice in the first round, according to SportBible, with The Sun also reporting the response and noting the angry-face emoji that accompanied it.
It was not a technical breakdown from Fury. He did not explain what had caught his attention.
But perhaps he did not need to. The footage told its own story.
Joshua, expected to control the contest, was suddenly fighting for survival against Prenga.
The knockdowns exposed openings that a fighter as experienced as Fury would have little difficulty recognising.
Yet there was another side to the performance.
Joshua did not panic. He did not allow the opening-round disaster to define the fight.
Instead, he came out for the second round with urgency, found his range and stopped Prenga to rescue what had threatened to become an embarrassing night.
That comeback is important.
So are the knockdowns.
The question is whether Fury can exploit it
Being dropped by Prenga does not mean Joshua will automatically be vulnerable against Fury.
The matchup is far more complicated than that.
But the incident has provided Fury with something every elite fighter wants before a major fight: evidence of how his opponent reacts when the pressure suddenly becomes real.
BBC Sport’s analysis of Joshua’s comeback highlighted the concern surrounding the ease with which he was hurt during the opening round.
That could be particularly relevant against Fury.
The former WBC champion has spent much of his career frustrating opponents with movement, feints, awkward angles and a style that makes it difficult to settle into a rhythm.
More importantly, Fury has repeatedly demonstrated an ability to capitalise when opponents become uncomfortable.
If Prenga could find Joshua twice in the opening round, Fury will believe he can find him too.
The difference is that Fury would be expected to be far more difficult to discourage once he gains an advantage.
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Fury has never lacked confidence against Joshua
The Prenga fight has also arrived at an interesting point in Fury’s own career.
After stepping away from boxing for an extended period, Fury returned to action with a victory over Arslanbek Makhmudov before defeating Mariusz Wach in Thailand.
Yet neither comeback fight has generated the same attention as his proposed meeting with Joshua.
Fury’s public comments have remained combative.
DAZN reported in August that Fury launched another verbal attack on Joshua, questioning his mentality while referring to the defeats suffered during his career.
That psychological battle has always been part of Fury’s approach.
He has repeatedly attempted to convince Joshua, the public and perhaps even himself that the matchup is tilted in his favour.
Now he has fresh ammunition.
Joshua has shown that he can recover from adversity.
But Fury may be asking a different question:
What happens if Joshua is hurt by someone who does not give him time to recover?
Adeleye believes Fury will have taken notice
David Adeleye, who has shared the ring in sparring with both Fury and Joshua, offered perhaps the clearest indication of how the boxing world could interpret Joshua’s performance.
According to The Sun, Adeleye said Fury would be “licking his lips” after seeing Joshua dropped twice.
It is a colourful assessment, but the underlying point is serious.
Fury will not simply see a fighter who recovered from adversity.
He will also see a heavyweight who was vulnerable enough for Prenga to put him down twice in a single round.
For Joshua, that distinction matters.
His greatest asset on the night was his ability to respond.
His biggest concern may have been the reason he needed to respond in the first place.
Madison Square Garden changes everything
Fury’s confirmation of Madison Square Garden as the venue has now taken the fight another step towards reality.
Al Jazeera reported on September 2 that Fury had confirmed the iconic New York venue, although the exact date had yet to be announced. November is widely expected to be the target.
The location gives the contest the kind of stage that matches its billing.
Two of Britain’s most recognisable heavyweights.
Two former world champions.
Two fighters who have spent years insisting they know exactly how to beat the other.
And now, finally, there appears to be a path towards settling it.
For Fury, Joshua’s fight with Prenga may represent more than an entertaining two-round comeback.
It may have exposed a question Fury believes he can answer.
Can Joshua take a punch from a world-class heavyweight and still recover before the fight gets away from him?
Joshua has already shown he can survive trouble.
Against Fury, however, survival may not be enough.
Because if Fury gets the opportunity to hurt him, the question will not be whether Joshua can get back up.
It will be whether Fury allows him to.
Olumide Atiba is a sports journalist with THEWILL, known for his keen news sense and compelling storytelling. He has built a reputation for turning leads into clear, well-structured reports that resonate with readers, with a strong focus on football coverage
