For the love of boxing, Tyson Fury‘s promoter Bob Arum has confirmed negotiations are underway for an undisputed title fight with Oleksandr Usyk in Saudi Arabia.
This comes days after Fury took to Instagram to describe plans for a blockbuster bout with Usyk in the Middle East as ‘bull****’, despite the Ukrainian’s team stating that talks were underway.
Tyson Fury looked set to face Oleksandr Usyk for the undisputed heavyweight titles in April, but talks collapsed after the pair made differing demand.
However, Arum’s recent comments have given fans hope that a fight to unify the division for the first time since Lennox Lewis beat Evander Holyfield in 1999 will finally take place.
Speaking to Ringside Reporter in an interview, Arum said: ‘I have talked to a representative of Skills Challenge, who put on these boxing events in Saudi Arabia.
‘We know these people, we worked for them in connection with the Jake Paul and Tommy Fury fight, so we know who the players are and we’ve had some very interesting talks with them.’
When asked whether the discussions with Saudi representatives concerned a December bout, Arum said: ‘Yes, that is correct’.
Fury and Usyk held negotiations earlier this year for an undisputed showdown, but failed to reach an agreement before the Ukrainian’s team pulled out of talks due to Fury’s demands.
Usyk’s promoter Alex Krassyuk placed the blame firmly at the door of the Gypsy King, accusing Fury of putting too many obstacles in the way of an agreement.
The tournament-style card would see Fury and Usyk fight on the same night as Anthony Joshua and Wilder in Saudi Arabia.
It is expected the pair will still both take to the ring this summer, with Usyk potentially defending his unified titles against British contender Daniel Dubois.
Fury angrily blamed his rival for the previous fight collapse, having failed to get him to agree to his public demand of no rematch clause.
