Heavyweight champion scuppers talk of paying the American £8m to set up unification bout against British rival
Tyson Fury has scuppered talk of paying Deontay Wilder ‘step-aside’ money in order to clear the way for a fight with British heavyweight rival Anthony Joshua next instead of a trilogy fight with the American later this year. Between them the two Britons hold all the heavyweight belts.
Wilder, moreover, has said in recent days that he wishes to exercise his rematch clause with Fury after losing the WBC heavyweight title to him in Las Vegas last February, in spite of reports claiming that the Alabaman was considering a $10 million (£8.1m) payment, plus a guarantee of a fight between the winner of Fury v Joshua.
Fury said he would rather beat Wilder for a second time in the ring than pay him a huge sum. “I think we’ve got the rematch with Wilder on as well at some point,” Fury said in an Instagram live video on Thursday.
“Then we’ve got two AJ fights, well one and then obviously when I batter him he’ll want a rematch. Wilder’s got a rematch clause. Some newspaper reported that he wanted $10 million to step aside.”
“But I’m not paying him no money to step aside, I’d rather take his scalp again. I’ll beat him in the ring, that’s how I’ll get him out of the way. I wouldn’t pay him $2 million to step aside – I’d rather give him another battering again.”
“I’m going to take him out again for the third time, hopefully at the end of the year, and then we’re going to go into 2021 with the biggest fight in boxing history between two undefeated British heavyweights, me and AJ, and we’re going to battle it out for all the gold, Fury added.
“There used to be a three-headed monster in this division – me, Wilder and Joshua – and then Ruiz knocked out Joshua, burst that bubble, broke him in, and then I broke in the Bronze Bomber.”
“Three became two and then two became one, and now I’m a standalone soldier. And they all need to come through me now and it’s not an easy task because I guard the gate.”