Boxing fans could be forgiven for losing hope that a legacy defining four-belt unification between Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury will ever take place, given the multiple failed negotiation stages that have already occurred and the public blame game that has went on for months between the pair.
Fury has now revealed the caveats he will require if he is to ever to step in the ring with the Ukrainian for a long awaited undisputed heavyweight world title fight.
In a recent interview with Fight Hub TV at the press conference for his clash with Francis Ngannou, Fury claimed he would only consider taking on Usyk, if the latter was willing to accept a “small percentage” for the contest.
“Has it ever been my priority? Did I ever say I wanted undisputed? It’s always been some other little b**** dream.
I’ve got Francis Ngannou to deal with. Should the other little sausage want to fight for the undisputed, and if he’s willing to take a small percentage then we might be able to make it happen.
But if he wants a large bag? Not happening.
Him [Usyk] and his team were s***houses! They get offered the fight at Wembley, and we moved on. That was it. Now we’re fighting Francis Ngannou, who is stepping up to the plate.”
Purse splits, venue and rematch clauses are just some of the issues that caused the fight to fall through earlier in the year, with many observes laying blame for that at the door of ‘The Gypsy King.‘
However, his promoter Frank Warren stated in an interview yesterday that he was quietly confident of putting together Fury vs Usyk in 2024, so perhaps these recent comments are (hopefully) a red herring from the Brit.