Eddie Hearn remained coy when asked if the first of two proposed bouts between Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury would take place in Saudi Arabia.
However, the new Matchroom Sport chairman insists they are merely ‘dotting the I’s and crossing the T’s’ and an official announcement is expected soon.
Last month, Hearn confirmed contracts were signed between the two heavyweight champions in the division to fight for the right to be crowned the undisputed heavyweight king.
Although the process has continued to linger on, it appears as though there have been huge strides in the past fortnight in terms of securing a date and a location for the first fight.
Despite both men hailing from the UK, Hearn warned fans to expect Saudi Arabia to host one of the fights last year, with Bob Arum suggesting the deal is almost done already.
“We have [site deal] contracts now that we are marking up and so forth,” Arum told FightScene. “It’s a big step. We’re just doing the paperwork now with the Saudis.”
Although one cannot fault the enthusiasm of the 89-year-old, it seems as though Hearn is keen to remind fans there is still some way to go on the deal and that nothing is ready to be confirmed…yet.
“Yeah that was a comment made by Bob Arum last night,” he told Drivetime on talkSPORT.
“You can’t really tell Bob what to say and what not to say! I’m keeping quiet on the matter.
“They’ve signed the contract; we presented them both with an offer from a site, which they both approved and accepted.
“We are dotting the I’s and crossing the T’s and you will get an announcement soon, but that fight is going to be happening this summer.
“It is one of the biggest of all time, probably the sporting event of 2021, so fingers crossed – we are nearly there.
“I keep saying we are nearly there but, as I said, site approved, deal approved, everything done now.
“We are just papering it and there will be an official announcement soon.”
