Deontay Wilder’s trainer and former fighter, Malik Scott, believes Tyson Fury priced himself out of talks with Oleksandr Usyk.
The two heavyweight title holders – Usyk unified with the WBA, WBO and IBF and Fury with the WBC – were in advanced talks to crown the divisions first sole champion in two decades before things fell apart.
Negotiations in the end were tarred by public demands and cryptic messages, telling fans all they needed to know about how things were going behind the scenes.
In the midst of that, Fury demanded 70% of the purse since the fight looked likely to be heading to his home stadium, Wembley.
Scott – who trained Wilder for his third fight with Fury – was asked about the 70/30 split demand by ES NEWS – and he believes the WBC champ’s intentions were clear when making the demand.
“That’s indirectly saying you really don’t want the fight.”
Others in the sport hold the same opinion, but Fury himself has unsurprisingly blamed Usyk, who accepted the split before later ordering his team to ‘pull the plug’ on talks.
Rather than points fingers, fans simply want to see the fight, which is apparently still on the table for a big money Middle East event towards the end of the year.
The tricky part now becomes keeping hold of the belts until then, with Scott’s Wilder right in the mix to upset those plans. He’s number one with both the WBA and the WBC, putting him in prime position for a shot at the man of his choosing later this year.
For now, he’s teased a ring return but provided no further information. Usyk is set to face his first mandatory challenger in Daniel Dubois, and Fury is radio silent.