Posted on 06/30/2023
By: Sean Crose
British heavyweight Joe Joyce now has a chance to avenge the loss he suffered to Zhilei Zhang this past spring. For, this September, the hard hitting contender will be battling Zhang again, this time around at OVO Arena Wembley. Without doubt, this fight means a great deal to Joyce, who was hailed as one of the best in the business before the talented Zhang put a spoke in the hype wheel. In other words, Joyce is in a situation where he MUST win. Enter one Tyson Fury, WBC and lineal heavyweight champion of the world.
“Joe, I saw you got the Zhang fight coming up again,” Fury posted on social media Friday. “If you want some proper southpaw sparring from someone who’s bigger, fatter, quicker, harder puncher — everything than Zhang, please come up to Morecambe and do some sparring with me.” It’s quite an offer, one that might well prove beneficial for Joyce. Like Zhang, Fury is a giant sized heavyweight, plus Fury, until proven otherwise, is the best in the division. “It can only improve it,” Fury continued. “It’ll make it better. And trust me on this, I’ve got a secret for you and I know how to beat Zhang. Chop him down like an old oak tree.”
The question now is whether Joyce will now go ahead and act on Fury’s suggestion. “The offer’s there, Joe,” Fury stated. “Get yourself down to Morecambe and do as many rounds as you want with myself. Get up there! Can’t say it any better than that.” It’s worth keeping in mind that Fury himself hasn’t fought in quite some time, though he’s teased that a huge announcement is on it’s way. He’s recently been attracting the attention of mixed martial artists who would love to get an opportunity to fight the heavyweight king for some heavyweight money.
All things considered, sparring sessions between Fury and Joyce might be good for both fighters. Then again, Fury could probably have reached out to Joyce in private. What’s more, one never knows how things will work out until things actually start working out. Ultimately, however, Zhang-Joyce 2 is going to be an interesting fight either way. Plus there’s never a dull moment when Fury is around. “I won’t charge you a lot,” Fury jokingly said in making his offer to Joyce, “just 100 grand a round.” Again, never a dull moment.