Various sports news: Fury and Joshua fight, Formula 1 tests in Azerbaijan, and changes in the French national team roster

Advisor Turki Al-Sheikh, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the General Entertainment Authority and President of the Saudi Boxing Federation, announced today (Thursday) that the anticipated confrontation between heavyweight champions Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua will be held on the 11th of next December at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, the capital of Wales in the United Kingdom, as part of “The Ring” bouts.

The fight between Fury and Joshua is considered one of the most anticipated confrontations in the world of boxing, as for more than a decade it has been present in the discussions of fans and followers of the game around the world, talking about the possibility of the fight taking place or not, in light of the status achieved by the two stars and their long careers in the heavyweight division.

Joshua enters the fight with a professional record that includes 30 victories versus 4 defeats, including 27 victories by knockout. During his career, he was involved in a number of prominent heavyweight fights, achieving victories over Wladimir Klitschko, Joseph Parker, Kubrat Pulev, and Andy Ruiz Jr. He also faced Oleksandr Usyk, Daniel Dubois and Francis Ngannou, and headlined major bouts at venues including Wembley and Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

On the other hand, Fury enters the confrontation with a professional record of 36 victories, two defeats and one draw, including 25 victories by knockout. His career witnessed notable victories over Wladimir Klitschko and Dillian Whyte, in addition to his famous hat-trick against Deontay Wilder, and two confrontations against Oleksandr Usyk in two consecutive fights for the undisputed world heavyweight championship.

On December 11, the attention of boxing fans will turn to Cardiff, where Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua will meet for the first time in an official confrontation, in a fight that brings together two of the most prominent heavyweight stars after more than a decade of anticipation and public interest around the world.

Italian Kimi Antonelli, the leader of the Formula 1 World Championship, suffered a problem in the hydraulic system of his car, while his Mercedes teammate George Russell recorded the fastest time in the first free trial of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix on Thursday.

The career of Italian Antonelli, who is ahead of Russell by 81 points at the top of the overall drivers’ standings, and is seeking to win his first title in the “World Championship,” ended after smoke rose from his car, while the experience witnessed several other accidents.

Russell clocked 1:45:387 minutes, 0.400 seconds ahead of Dutchman Max Verstappen, the Red Bull driver, winner of the 2025 Azerbaijan Race and four-time world champion. Charles Leclerc, a Ferrari driver, came in third place.

The first and second trials will be held on Thursday in Baku, instead of the usual time on Friday, after the “Azerbaijan Grand Prix” race program was moved forward by one day.

The race will be held on Saturday instead of Sunday, which coincides with national celebrations in Azerbaijan, while the third free trial and official trial will be held on Friday, within the 15th round out of 23 rounds in the World Championship.

Zinedine Zidane, the coach of the French national team, called up Lenny Euro, the 20-year-old Manchester United defender, to join the team roster, today (Thursday), to compensate for the absence of the injured Ibrahima Konate.

Euro is looking forward to making his first appearance with the senior French national team, after previously joining the U-21 national team.

Konate felt pain in his knee during training, before an MRI revealed that he had a slight sprain in his right knee, causing him to miss France's match against Turkey, tomorrow (Friday), in the European Nations League, so the Real Madrid defender returned to his club to complete his treatment program.

Euros became the seventh new player to join Zidane's list of 23 players, after the list saw a number of players called up for the first time, namely Toulouse goalkeeper Guillaume Rest, defenders Jeremy Jacquet of Liverpool, Andy Diof of Inter Milan, midfielder Lucas da Cunha of Como, and striker Esteban Lupul of Rennes.

Como's goalkeeper, Jean Botez, also joined the list last Sunday; To compensate for the absence of the injured Robin Ryser, before the Euros join him today (Thursday).