From Fury vs. Joshua to Beterbiev vs. Benavidez: The dream fights to be made in 2026

A New Year and new hope for another fine year of boxing.

The sweet science again thoroughly entertained in 2025 with the likes of  Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol headlining arguably the greatest fight card of all time, Oleksandr Usyk crowned undisputed heavyweight world champion again, Chris Eubank Jr and Conor Benn providing a seething rivalry and instant classic in their first encounter, David Benavidez and Hamzah Sheeraz delivering hugely impressive, devasting performances in the latter part of the year, and fights in stunning, unique venues like Times Square.

Every great fight of 2025 was live on DAZN and that will be the case again in 2026, wIth the home of boxing  again broadcasting over 185 fight nights a year, and at even better value with the DAZN Ultimate Tier subscription offering PPVs included in the subscription price.

There is hope that Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua will finally meet, with talks underway for Oleksandr Usyk versus Deontay Wilder, while there will be huge intrigue to see where Canelo Álvarez goes next and what the likes of Ryan Garcia can do in 2026.

Meanwhile huge fights between Agit Kabayel and Damian Knyba ,  Moses Itauma vs. Jermaine Franklin , and Teofimo Lopez against Shakur Stevenson are already scheduled for January, all live and exclusive on DAZN.

With so many potentially great storylines, rivalries and fights to be made, the DAZN News team have been have making their wishes for their dream fights to be made in 2026.

DAZN

What are the dream fights to be made in 2026?

Chris Walker

Moses Itauma vs Anthony Joshua

Moses Itauma will be linked to Oleksandr Usyk in 2026, but if he is to become the face of British boxing then what better way of reaching that platform than knocking out the man who currently holds that position.

It’s uncertain how long Anthony Joshua has left at the top, but if a fight between him and Tyson Fury can’t be made then why not Itauma against Joshua? A certain stadium sellout between old school and new.

Can Joshua dig deep enough one last time and delay the heir’s rise to the throne or will Itauma prove boxing is a young man’s sport just like Joshua did against Wladimir Klitschko back in 2017.

Chris Oliver

Artur Beterbiev versus David Benavidez is a contest that screams pure violence.

While they are both currently light heavyweights, Benavidez is stepping up to cruiserweight for a blockbuster with Gilberto Ramirez in 2026 and Beterbiev has said he would follow him for a fight at 200lbs.

Beterbiev may have lost his belts at 175lbs to Dimitry Bivol last time out but that was another close fight and he remains a very dangerous opponent for anybody, with the move up in weight possibly giving him a new lease of life.

Benavidez continued his unbeaten run with another destructive stoppage of Anthony Yarde in November and his relentless approach would spell fireworks against the heavy-handed Beterbiev.

Matt Astbury

Dalton Smith vs. Adam Azim.

For one reason or another, this fight has not got made, but if Smith beats Subriel Matias to become WBC super lightweight champion, then this particular contest has to be made.

Speaking to Azim earlier this year, he confirmed that this fight can be made in 2026, and if it does, then it will be a huge all-British showdown between two exciting talents.

Mark Lelinwalla

There are plenty of fights I'd like to see get made in 2026 but if there's one I'd have to say it's Shakur Stevenson vs. Gervonta 'Tank' Davis.

As long as the latter's mind is right and he is solely focused on boxing, Davis' explosive power pitted against Stevenson's sweet science brilliance would be too enticing of a matchup.

Andrew Steel

Nick Ball has been calling for Naoya Inoue's head for several months now - and with a list of foes running low for the latter, it may well be time for them to finally meet.

The Liverpool fighter has frequently bamboozled opponents with his small frame and dense power, but he will have his work cut out against the pound-for-pound great.

Yet Inoue's aura of imperious awe is slowly starting to fade too - and a clash between them could just be the fight-of-the-year powder keg everybody deserves to see.

Watch López  vs. Stevenson only on DAZN PPV

Teofimo López and Shakur Stevenson headline the Ring VI fight night in New York, exclusively on DAZN PPV, on January 31, 2026.

Purchase as a one-off PPV, or get included at no extra cost with a DAZN Ultimate Tier subscription, which includes minimum of 12 PPV events per year, plus another 185 fight nights. Monthly and annual options available.

Sign up for Ultimate for £22.99 in the UK / $44.99 in the U.S. More details here.