24 September 2026 · 2 min read
Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury will finally meet on 11 December in Cardiff, with Joshua preparing in Dubai as one of boxing’s biggest rivalries heads to the ring.
The wait is over. Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury will finally share a professional boxing ring. The two former heavyweight world champions will meet at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium on Friday, 11 December 2026, bringing an end to years of negotiations, speculation and failed attempts to make one of British boxing’s biggest fights. The contest will stream globally on Netflix. It will be the first professional meeting between Joshua and Fury, with Joshua entering the fight at 30-4 and Fury at 36-2-1. But for the UAE boxing community, there is another connection to the story.
Dubai becomes part of Joshua's road to Fury
Joshua has been spending time preparing in Dubai, with recent footage showing the former unified heavyweight champion training in the emirate as preparations intensify for Fury. Earlier this summer, Team Joshua also arranged for a replacement boxing ring to be installed at his Dubai training camp ahead of his July fight in Jeddah. That makes this more than simply another international fight announcement for UAE followers of the sport. The UAE has become an increasingly visible part of the international boxing ecosystem — a place where fighters train, gyms develop talent and the local amateur and professional scenes continue to grow. Joshua preparing in Dubai ahead of a fight of this magnitude is another connection between the UAE boxing community and the highest level of the global sport.
A fight years in the making
Joshua and Fury have dominated the British heavyweight conversation for more than a decade, yet their careers repeatedly passed without the two meeting in the ring. That changes in December. The bout was officially confirmed on 24 September by Turki Alalshikh, Chairman of Saudi Arabia's General Entertainment Authority and President of the Saudi Boxing Federation. The Ring and Dana White are set to collaborate on promoting the event, while further undercard announcements are still to come. Before fight night, Joshua and Fury are scheduled to come face-to-face at a press conference in London on 30 September.
From Dubai to Cardiff
For NXT Fight, the significance is not about claiming Joshua as a UAE fighter. He isn't. It's about recognising the UAE's growing connection to international boxing while keeping the focus on the community here. A British heavyweight rivalry will be settled in Wales. One of the men preparing for it has been putting in work in Dubai. And on 11 December, the UAE boxing community will be watching with the rest of the world. Joshua vs Fury. Finally.