Deontay Wilder is intent on fighting Tyson Fury for a third time and is not willing to accept money to step aside, according to Top Rank promoter Bob Arum. It has been suggested that Wilder could accept an offer to not activate his rematch clause against Fury in order to pave the way for the Gypsy King to fight Anthony Joshua sooner. Joshua, meanwhile, was scheduled to fight Kubrat Pulev, the IBF’s mandatory challenger on June 20, but that has now been postponed in response to the coronavirus pandemic. When asked about the prospect of Wilder accepting a step-aside offer, Arum told iFL TV: ‘Absolutely none.
‘Wilder wants to fight Fury again. He’s not indicated to us or anybody else that he would be willing to step aside. ‘A further question is who is going to pay him to step aside? Top Rank CEO Bob Arum believes Tyson Fury will fight Deontay Wilder in Autumn (Getty Images) ‘And, anyone on our staff has not even raised the possibility with us. ‘So as far as we’re concerned, we’re thinking ahead to a third Fury – Wilder fight. ‘We’re Pulev’s co-promoter and nobody has discussed with us a step-aside [payment]. ‘I speak with authority on this because of my relationship with Pulev and my role in Fury and Wilder, there has been absolutely no discussions by anybody about either of those guys [Wilder or Pulev] stepping aside.’