Wladimir Klitschko said he expects to fight Tyson Fury next and he would be open to the fight being in England Wladimir Klitschko said he expects to fight Tyson Fury next and he would be open to the fight being in England

Wladimir Klitschko says his next fight will be against Tyson Fury - and is willing to do it back in the United Kingdom.

The 39-year-old Ukrainian has revealed that talks about fighting Fury have almost been completed, although a possible venue is yet to be decided.

Klitschko, the WBA, IBF and WBO champion, has fought once before in Britain back in 2000 when he halted Monte Barrett on the undercard of Lennox Lewis’ knockout win over Francois Botha.

The prospect of fighting Fury in front of his home fans would not faze Klitschko, who is considering UK venues as he looks for possible locations in Europe.

I look forward to fighting back in England or another place. It’s definitely going to be somewhere in Europe. Wladimir Klitschko

“I think we are pretty much done with that and I hope so too," Klitschko told Ringside.

"You never say until the contracts are signed and I'm really open-minded.

“I haven’t fought in England for a long time. It was a great event and a great audience. British fight fans are really exciting and loud. I really got to hear them also in my fight against David Haye in Hamburg.

"I look forward to fighting back in England or another place. It’s definitely going to be somewhere in Europe. It’s not a fight for the United States.”

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On his road to a world title shot, Fury is unbeaten with 24 wins, and has previously attended one of Klitschko’s training camps.

But the long-reigning champion has not paid too much attention to his latest challenger, although he is familiar with Fury’s outspoken behaviour before fights.

“I haven’t watched too many fights of Tyson Fury," Klitschko said. "I've heard a couple of things in the background and his involvement in fights, especially verbal fights.

"I think he is more famous for his verbal fighting that the actual boxing fighting. Obviously he’s had 20 something fights - I haven’t watched his fights in particular.

“I’ve heard about him and I’ve seen him as well, while he was in my training camp, during the time when Emanuel Steward brought him in. I’ve seen him sparring a couple of guys, a couple of rounds, but I can’t say much about him right now.

“I think we’re going to get together at the first press conference before the fight and after I’m going to watch how he fights and what he does in the ring so I can give a better assessment of Tyson Fury.”

The Ukrainian defeated Monte Barrett on his last trip to the UK in 2000

Klitschko remains determined to unify all the titles and is keeping a close eye on Deontay Wilder, who defends his WBC belt against Eric Molina this Saturday, live on Sky Sports.

"Obviously he is one of my target opponents, since he’s holding the title that I've never had before," said Klitschko.

"I definitely want to unify all the belts, but it’s not a must. If that’s not going to work, I’ll still be the heavyweight champion of the world. It’s not a must, but it would be nice to unify that belt that Deontay Wilder holds."