Dana White shares a detail from the Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua fight contract that might involve him
Dana White has finally shared how he’s able to be part of the huge boxing match between Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua. The two British heavyweights will face off at the Principality Stadium on December 11, bringing their long-running rivalry into the ring.
About 80,000 fans are expected to attend, with the event running late into the night—fight walks might start after 1 a.m. so viewers in the United States can watch live on Netflix.
Joshua’s longtime promoter, Eddie Hearn, has often questioned White’s role, saying the contract says he can’t be involved. But the UFC boss insists he’s promoting the fight and his team is helping produce it for Netflix.
Fury mentioned he had the same contract clause as Joshua, barring White’s involvement, but he chose to remove it. White now says there was never a clause stopping him personally from being involved.
“I know it says Zuffa and TKO can’t be involved,” White told The Sun. “But it doesn’t say I can’t be personally.”
He added he doesn’t mind whether his name is on paper or contracts—it’s all about what people want. Both Turki Alalshikh and Netflix wanted White involved, so he’s working as a special advisor to Alalshikh, who supports his promotion, Zuffa.
White wanted the fight in Madison Square Garden, New York, but couldn’t make it happen. Instead, the showdown between these two former British heavyweight champs will be in the UK, where ticket demand was huge—half a million people queued for tickets!
The cheapest tickets started at £80, and White says the event is basically sold out now. He thinks it will break records for gate revenue in British boxing.
“There are fewer than 700 tickets left,” White told Sky Sports. “You can call it a sellout. Over 500,000 people wanted tickets—amazing. For our generation, these are two of the biggest, most famous heavyweights.”
He also said, “This is definitely the biggest UK fight ever between two British heavyweights. We’re planning for about $34 million (£26 million) from the gate.”
The current record for a British boxing gate is £14 million, set when Joshua fought Daniel Dubois at Wembley earlier this year. Fury’s last big fight was also at Wembley, two years ago, against Dillian Whyte.
In the world of boxing, though, this fight’s gate is still less than the $70 million made when Floyd Mayweather fought Manny Pacquiao in Las Vegas in 2015.