No sooner had Anthony Joshua given his demands to step aside for Tyson Fury to battle Oleksandr Usyk had the whole charade been kicked in the nuts.
AJ wanted a vast $52 million check to walk away from a rematch with Usyk, as per promoter Eddie Hearn in an online interview.
Now, as the dust settles on Frank Warren choking on his cornflakes at the prospect of paying Joshua that amount, the World Boxing Council stepped in to declare Fury has to face Dillian Whyte.
They said: “The WBC hereby orders the start of the free negotiations period pursuant to the WBC Rules and Regulations for the mandatory bout between WBC World Heavyweight Champion Tyson Fury and Mandatory Challenger and WBC Interim World Champion Dillian Whyte.”
This ruling means the pair have a short time with their respective teams to develop a deal that suits all.
But there’s a massive problem. Fury got an 80-20 split handed to him by the WBC. This stipulation could see talks hit stumbling blocks early on if Whyte doesn’t get a decent slice of the pie.
The WBC hereby orders the start of the free negotiations period pursuant to the WBC Rules & Regulations for the mandatory bout between WBC World Heavyweight Champion Tyson Fury and Mandatory Challenger and WBC Interim World Champion Dillian Whyte. pic.twitter.com/XFugoKHrQM
— World Boxing Council (@WBCBoxing) December 7, 2021
FURY vs. WHYTE
There’s no doubting that Fury vs. Whyte will go out on Pay Per View in the UK, potentially just on BT Sport, given DAZN’s paid platform not yet being fully operational.
But this does allow Hearn and Whyte the opportunity to remain on PPV in Briton. That’s despite the newly-arranged ties with a streaming service.
It’s the purse split where the biggest detraction falls.
Fury must give Whyte at least a couple of million dollars to keep him happy. However, paying out that from a Pay Per View that’s not guaranteed to sell well on home soil could be a difficult one.
The fight is decent level in the UK, but it’s not a really top draw fight. After Whyte got planted by Alexander Povetkin, Fury is an outstanding favorite to win.
STOCK
His stock dropped considerably. And even more, if you add horrible wins over Oscar Rivas, Mariusz Wach, and Joseph Parker into the bargain.
‘The Gypsy King’ will be after a significant payday due to his exploits against Deontay Wilder. It remains to be seen whether the UK market can provide that for both.
It may well come down to a WBC purse bid that would see both get less than they are after – unless they get on the same page quickly.
The views expressed in this article are opinions of Phil Jay.
Phil Jay – Editor of World Boxing News since 2010 with over one billion views. Follow WBN on Twitter @WorldBoxingNews.
