Tyson Fury enrolls in drug testing programme after Anthony Joshua threatened to boycott London press conference ahead of £150m Cardiff bout

Tyson Fury has now enrolled in the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association (VADA)’s testing programme ahead of his blockbuster showdown with Anthony Joshua, his camp has confirmed.

The development comes just 24 hours after Joshua threatened to boycott Wednesday’s first press conference in London unless Fury could prove he had entered the VADA testing pool.

Joshua had already enrolled, while Fury’s camp maintained that the terms of their agreement gave him longer to do so.

But with the first face-to-face meeting between the two heavyweights looming, Fury has now completed his enrolment and provided his whereabouts to VADA.

Fury’s manager, Spencer Brown, told Playbook Boxing: ‘We are enrolled in VADA. We are enrolled in VADA. Just to confirm that.’

Asked about the timing of Fury’s enrolment, they added: ‘He did it a bit earlier then when the fight was announced. In our contract, we had more time, but you know, it doesn’t matter. We’ve done it. We’ve done everything we’ve been asked to do. Everything.’

The Gypsy King’s manager also explained that enrolment and testing are separate stages of the VADA process.

Asked whether Fury had already been tested, they said: ‘No, you have to enrol first, don’t you? That part of it’s all been done, then the testing comes second.’

Brown stressed that the nature of VADA’s programme means fighters are not given advance warning of when testers will arrive.

‘You could be tested in a week, you could be sitting there on your toilet and they knock on the door,’ he said. ‘That’s the way they work. They don’t tell you a time. They don’t say we’re coming round tomorrow. That’s the way. That’s why it works.’

The dispute had threatened to become an unwanted subplot to a fight more than a decade in the making.

Joshua’s camp had raised concerns after it emerged that the two fighters had different timelines under their respective contractual arrangements, with promoter Eddie Hearn subsequently making clear that he expected Fury to enter the programme.

There is now another significant issue to resolve before December 11: exactly when the fight will take place.

The heavyweight blockbuster will be staged at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium and streamed globally by Netflix, with organisers targeting the US primetime market. The main event is expected to take place in the early hours of Saturday morning in Britain, with a ring walk potentially as late as 2am.

Brown has now revealed that the precise timing is still being negotiated and made clear that he does not want the fight to start at 2am.

‘I think 2am is far too late,’ he said.

‘I think that the general public in England will want to watch it in the pubs, the clubs, you know, round each other’s houses. There’ll be a party atmosphere, and I just think it needs to be earlier. Simple as that.’

Brown added: ‘It’s all in negotiation at the moment, but it shouldn’t be at 2 o’clock in the morning. I certainly wouldn’t like to sit there at 2 o’clock in the morning, would you?’

And Brown also questioned the experience for the thousands of fans expected to attend in Cardiff.

‘I think 99 per cent of the people will probably tell you that if you’re in the stadium, you don’t want to be sitting in the stadium till 2 o’clock in the morning, freezing your nuts off.’

The late start has been driven by the fact Netflix is looking to maximise its US audience, while Cardiff’s Principality Stadium was selected after the proposed venues in London could not accommodate the required late finish.

The venue can accommodate the late finish, but the event’s licensing arrangements have also required negotiation because of the proposed early-hours schedule.

Fury and Joshua are due to meet for the first time in public since their long-awaited fight was officially confirmed at Wednesday’s press conference in London.

The bout, which will be contested at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium on December 11, is the culmination of years of failed negotiations between the former world champions.

Both men have won their respective comeback fights this year, clearing the way for the long-awaited all-British heavyweight showdown.

Now, with Fury’s VADA enrolment confirmed, attention can turn back to the build-up and whether organisers can find a start time that works for both the global Netflix audience and the British fans inside and outside the stadium.