Over the past few months, negotiations for a fight between the British rivals have been played out in public and, as long as Joshua beats Prenga and Fury beats Mariusz Wach in Thailand on July 24, the two should finally meet before the end of 2026.

Joshua (29-4, 26 KOs) has already fallen foul of one monumental upset.

In June 2019, Andy Ruiz altered the course of heavyweight history when he got off the floor to knock out Joshua in the seventh round of a dramatic fight at Madison Square Garden in New York.

Joshua is far too professional to overlook Prenga, 35, but a Fury fight has never been closer and the two-time unified champion accepted he's finding it impossible not to allow his mind to drift ahead.

Prenga (20-1, 20 KOs) doesn’t have anything other than July 25th in his mind and the Albanian believes being cast as an NPC in the long running Joshua-Fury saga could play to his advantage.

“I don't think it's offended me, but I'm happy because they underestimated me,” he said during an interview with DAZN.

“I think it's not a good idea he make plans to fight Tyson Fury. I like only God to make my plans. I don't want to make plans for myself because if I do, [it is as if] I want to go on top of God and I can't do that. God is first. It's the only one. He make the plans and I think I'm going to break his [Joshua's] plan for me.”

Despite his glossy record, Prenga has never boxed anybody remotely comparable to Joshua who, despite being 36 years old, remains one of the most high-profile fighters on the planet.

He will however, draw hope from Joshua’s current form.

Aside from routine knockout wins over former UFC champion Francis Ngannou and Jake Paul, his last meaningful win came back in December 2023 when punishing Otto Wallin to a fifth-round corner retirement.

He hasn’t boxed a true heavyweight since current WBO champion Daniel Dubois knocked him out in five rounds in September 2024. That combination of star power and vulnerability makes him such a tantalising target for somebody like Prenga.

“I don't think he is the best heavyweight in the world, but he's a great fighter... I think he has a lot of flaws,” said Prenga who, despite English not being his first language, made it clear that he expects to win inside the distance.

“It's not going to go 10 rounds or 12 rounds.”