- Fury will fight Usyk for the undisputed heavyweight championship on May 18
- Rivals have a rematch clause in October and there is potential for a trilogy fight
- Fury’s highly anticipated showdown will have to wait until next year for Joshua
Tyson Fury has put Anthony Joshua on hold as he maps out as many as 10 more fights that will transform him from a multi-millionaire into boxing’s first billionaire.
The long-awaited Battle of the British Giants will have to wait until next year when the Gypsy King and Ukrainian war hero Oleksandr Usyk clash twice in 2024 to decide which of them will reign as the first undisputed world heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis.
Fury says: “Unless the contract between Usyk and I isn’t worth the paper it’s written on – and it’s a double bubble worth a lot to both of us – we’ll have a rematch after our first fight next month.”
As for Team Joshua’s insistence that AJ and Tyson will fight each other soon, Fury says: “I’ve lost a few million over the years due to contract disputes and no court in the world can challenge the legality of the rematch clause refute this. .
“And why would the winner or loser of our first fight want to withdraw from a second fight when there is so much money at stake?”
Tyson Fury has ten more fights planned to become boxing’s first billionaire
Fury will fight Oleksandr Usyk for the undisputed heavyweight championship on May 18
Neither, is the answer. Not because both men were expected to make around a hundred million dollars from each fight. Both in Riyadh, the new fighting capital of the world. The first on May 18, the second at the end of October.
On suspending Joshua, Fury said: “He had two bouts on Usyk and lost both. And he had a meltdown after the second loss. Now it’s my time.’
Tyson was speaking in his home town of Morecambe as he launched the four-week countdown to Usyk 1.
While addressing the press conference, His Excellency Türkie Al Al Sikh, who directs the massive financing of fights in Saudi Arabia, came over a speaker phone to say: ‘Tyson, you are the diamond of world boxing. You know I want you to be our crown jewel for ten more fights.”
Fury, 35, said: “I know. And went on to outline that sequence as follows:
‘Usyk twice this year. Joshua twice next year. “Then faster fights against Daniel Dubois, Joe Joyce, a fourth fight with Deontay Wilder maybe in the US.
‘Then Joseph Parker perhaps followed by European champion Agit Kabayal. Then a trilogy fight with Usyk.”
On the timing, he said: “I could fight until I’m 40 and I’m happiest when I’m boxing. But I’d like to knock that out in three out of four fights a year. Then see what’s next. ‘
Fury is anything but deflated by his recent struggle to rise from defeat and marginally beat UFC. Legend Francis Ngannou.
Rivals agreed a rematch clause in October and there is potential for a trilogy fight
Fury’s highly anticipated clash with Anthony Joshua will have to wait until next year
When his promoter Frank Warren and trainer Sugar Hill predicted that he would knock out the also undefeated Usyk in May to add the WBA, IBF and WBO titles to his WBC belt, becoming the first undisputed champion of the era four belts, Fury joked: “I’m tipping Usyk to stop me in the first round!”
He then added: ‘He is a great champion who deserves all our respect. So don’t say he’s bad if I beat him up twice. I could do that every day of the week.’
The sun peeked through the clouds descending over Morecambe Bay as long-time host Fury began the countdown to what he calls: ‘My destiny’
All is well again in the Gypsy Kingdom.’
