ANTHONY JOSHUA and Tyson Fury will not fight each other without Deontay Wilder giving them the green light, claimed Derek Chisora.
Wilder was dethroned of his WBC belt in February 2020 but already had an immediate rematch clause in the contract.
But Fury’s side argued it expired in October, allowing them to instead begin talks for an undisputed title decider with AJ.
Wilder is still fighting his case through a mediator and Chisora expects the American to have the final say on the Gypsy King’s future.
He told DAZN: “My opinion, I keep telling everyone, you have to understand Deontay Wilder signed a three-fight deal with Tyson.
“Pandemic came, and shut everything down, AJ had his fight with Kubrat Pulev, and the whole hype thing happened with his fight with Fury.
“But don’t forget the three-fight deal with Wilder. It’s not going to happen because he has to fight with Wilder before everything else.
“So Wilder says I’ll stand aside for 80 million. The fight only happens when Tyson Fury fights Deontay Wilder.”
Should Fury, 32, be allowed to go ahead with his unification with Joshua, 31, Wilder, 35, is expected to at least be compensated financially.
But, he has been given new life in his hopes for redemption as negotiations for the Battle of Britain drag on.
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Fury and AJ signed a fight agreement in March with promoters then left to secure a date and venue.
Eddie Hearn is adamant a deal to host the historic headliner is close to completion with hosts Saudi Arabia choosing from three weekends in late July or early August.
But Fury’s US promoter Bob Arum had a contrasting opinion and astonishingly claimed the fight was ‘dead in the water’.
Arum told The Telegraph: “It will take months for the Saudis to do their due diligence on such a huge deal.
“It is not just a site fee, there are ancillary demands from the Saudis stretching into the broadcast deals and other things, it could take months for it all to play out.
“It could even take until 2022 the way it looks right now. The fight in July or August is dead in the water as far as we are concerned.
“The two fighters need to go and have other fights this summer while the negotiations for that fight in the Middle East conclude.
“It is absurd what Hearn is saying that it is a done deal.
“If we had just done a site deal without all the other complications that have arisen, we would have a fight by now.
“Tyson Fury is fuming about it and is refusing to keep waiting.”
Arum and Fury flew to California this week for arbitration with Wilder and the promoter admitted mediation could instead turn to fight talks.
But in another twist, according to The Athletic, a site deal worth more than £108m is expected to be completed this weekend.
It would see, for the first time in heavyweight history all four belts on the line, with Riyadh in Saudi, the hosts in early August.
Joshua’s promoter Hearn, the driving force behind the talks, is even confident the fight will finally be announced by next week.
He said to iFL TV: “I believe we announce this fight next week. I do.
“Because, if we don’t, I do agree with Bob, by then why wouldn’t that be done? I don’t think there is a reason it won’t be done, to be honest with you.”
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
