With rumours that Tyson Fury could be forced to withdraw from his upcoming bout with Anthony Joshua, three other boxers stand out as the perfect replacements.

On December 11, the long-awaited British heavyweight superfight between historic rivals Fury and Joshua is finally set to take place at Cardiff's Principality Stadium.

However, recent rumours started by fellow former British champion Frank Bruno have suggested that Fury may be dealing with an injury, prompting worries that plans may have to change to bring in a late replacement.

Tyson Fury v Anthony Joshua cast doubt as mystery injury emerges

After more than a decade, Fury v Joshua is now just over one month away following several failed attempts to secure the fight in the past.

But, it appears that the fight could again be at risk of falling apart once again as Fury might actually be secretly nursing an injury.

Former heavyweight champion Bruno, who has spent time training with Fury, is the source of the rumour having revealed he recently revealed that he had been told that there is an undisclosed injury.

Speaking on the latest episode of Fight Your Corner with Tony Bellew: "I looked at him the other day and I think someone was talking to me in the gym that he’s got some injury.

"Which may stop him from going into the fight with Anthony Joshua. And having that in your head isn't nice."

However, Bellew added that it remains possible that Fury, who is known for playing mind games, simply wanted Bruno to think he was injured so that he would speak about it publicly.

He replied: "He plays up to the camera, Frank.

"I think he wants to, you know, he’s going to be saying certain things.

"I do think Tyson Fury is the master of the mind games. Yeah, he’s very, very good at it. Very, very good at the mind games."

Who could replace Tyson Fury if he pulls out injured?

Of course, that doesn't do much to ease the concerns that fans will no doubt have upon learning that Fury could be out of the mega fight next month.

And if Fury is forced to pull out, questions will be raised as to what the plan for Joshua could be and if the fight would still go ahead.

Depending on the severity of the injury, the first choice would no doubt be to simply reschedule the fight for some time in the near future.

But if Fury is sidelined for a while, Joshua could instead choose to take another opponent on short notice to keep himself fresh.

If this were to happen, this is who we think could step up to take the headline spot in the main event against Joshua in December.

Deontay Wilder

By far the most likely, and exciting, replacement for Fury would be fellow former champion Wilder, who has long been linked with both Fury and Joshua throughout his career.

Despite fighting Fury on three occasions, Wilder and Joshua never actually settled their rivalry in the ring, and this would present the perfect opportunity to do so.

And given the fact that the Bronze Bomber was recently confirmed to be facing Jai Opetaia in the co-main event of the same card, it should be an easy enough fight to arrange on short notice should it be deemed necessary.

Andy Ruiz Jr.

Back in June 2019, Ruiz Jr shocked the world with one of the biggest upsets in heavyweight boxing history as he knocked Joshua out to win the WBA, IBF and WBO heavyweight titles in dramatic fashion.

Joshua later beat the Mexican boxer in an instant rematch, reclaiming his belts with a one-sided decision, meaning the two men are one a piece.

Naturally, Ruiz Jr has called for the trilogy fight ever since losing the rematch, and stepping in on late notice once again to fight Joshua could be an exciting way to get fans on board to see the two men face off one last time to settle their rivalry once and for all.

Joseph Parker

With the Principality Stadium selected as the host venue for Fury v Joshua, it immediately brings back memories of Joshua beating Parker to unify three heavyweight titles in Cardiff in 2018.

Eight years later, Parker is better than ever and looks set to be the next challenger for WBO champion Daniel Dubois sometime next year.

But a rematch with Joshua in the biggest heavyweight fight card in years could be enough o tempt him away from that potential world title opportunity, with a win over the Brit absolutely cementing himself as the next title challenger sometime in 2027.