rewrite this title Anthony Joshua vs Tyson Fury: AJ won’t object to 2am start if heavyweight blockbuster can be held at Wembley stadium

Anthony Joshua wouldn’t object if his blockbuster showdown with Tyson Fury has to start at 2am in order for it to be held in the UK.

Organisers of the fight want it to be staged no earlier than 2am if it is held at London’s Wembley stadium, and Sky Sports News understands Joshua’s team have no issues with that if it can be arranged with the relevant authorities.

It is in Joshua’s contract that the fight will be in the UK as it stands, despite the growing feeling it could end up in the United States.

Turki Alalshikh, who is organising the all-British bout, said on Monday that he wants the fight to take place at a time that works for a global audience, and intends to hold talks with the Mayor of London, Sir Sadiq Khan, in a bid to obtain permission to host a late-night fight in the capital.

Khan responded to Alalshikh’s comments by saying he “supported ambitions” to hold the fight in London, before Alalshikh posted on social media that he had so far been told a later start time was “not possible”.

Meanwhile Brent Council, the local authority that would be involved in granting approval, has said an extension to Wembley’s current 11pm curfew would need to be assessed by the stadium’s safety advisory group, which the council is part of.

Following that exchange of statements, Sky Sports News learned on Wednesday that ringwalks for the main event would need to start at 2am if it is to be staged at the iconic venue.

It would appear likely that this desire will now be officially communicated to Khan, along with the other authorities that would have to green light an agreement.

Alalshikh wants the bout to be accessible to a US television audience, and a 2am UK start would translate to 9pm ET and 6pm PT in the States.

No date has yet been set for the fight, but it is expected to take place in November.

Both former world champions are competing in warm-up fights later in July, with a surprise defeat or injury for either appearing to be the only potential obstacles to their meeting going ahead.

Fury faces Mariusz Wach in Thailand on July 24, while Joshua is taking on Kristian Prenga a day later in Saudi Arabia.

Speaking at an event in London, Alalshikh said: “I tell you from the beginning, it depends if England give us all that we need, we want the fight here in England.

“But we want the time zone of all the world, especially in America. If they allowed us to have Wembley late in the night, we want to do it in England. It is about the time and viewership.

“We will talk with the mayors and (Saudi ambassador) Prince Abdullah (bin Khaled bin Sultan).”

Khan did not comment on whether the fight could be moved to later in the evening to accommodate an international audience.

“London is the sporting capital of the world, and the Mayor is working to bring more of the world’s biggest events to the city,” a spokesperson for the Mayor of London said on Tuesday.

“London has staged some of the biggest boxing events in recent history at Wembley Stadium, with record crowds of over 90,000 attending heavyweight contests including Anthony Joshua vs Daniel Dubois and Tyson Fury vs Dillian Whyte.

“Sadiq has made clear that London would be the perfect place to stage the long-awaited bout between Anthony Joshua vs Tyson Fury and the Mayor stands ready to support ambitions to bring the event to our capital as we build a better London for everyone.”

But after the statement had been published, Alalshikh took to social media to write: “Hopefully a positive statement from the Mayor of London’s office about a later start time if Fury v Joshua is in London, as so far we have been told it is not possible.”