Tyson Fury vs Deontay Wilder 3 will definitely happen and Wilder will not be pulling out, according to his manager Shelley Finkel.
Recent weeks have seen some experts – notably Matchroom Boxing supremo Eddie Hearn – openly question whether Wilder (42-1-1) would fulfil his planned date with ‘The Gypsy King’ as they complete their trilogy. This on the back of virtual media silence from ‘The Bronze Bomber’ as he recovers from bicep surgery and spends time with his family.
At the weekend the World Boxing Council (WBC) even said Fury (30-0-1) could face its mandatory contender Dillian Whyte (27-1) first if for any reason the Wilder showdown could not go ahead.
All this after initially there had been talk of potential step-aside money for Wilder and Anthony Joshua’s IBF mandatory Kubrat Pulev (28-1), so the two British world champions could go ahead and meet each other in a huge unification showdown next summer.
But Finkel, speaking to World Boxing News, rubbished all the rumours, saying: “I don’t know where a story about Deontay Wilder pulling out of the Tyson Fury fight comes from. It’s simply not true.
“Deontay Wilder intends to fight Tyson Fury. That is the next fight and it will happen.”
As yet there is no set date for Fury vs Wilder 3, with most recent talk from Fury’s co-promoter Bob Arum favouring December 19 with a number of potential sites including the Las Vegas Raiders’ brand new Allegiant Stadium. The bout had first been scheduled for July and then October, but the global COVID-19 pandemic scuppered any chance of those dates happening.
The pair have fought twice already, the first a thrilling and controversial draw in Los Angeles in December 2018, when Fury had to get off the floor twice. Then an eagerly-awaited rematch in Las Vegas in February when Fury handed Wilder a stunning first professional defeat via a dominant seventh-round TKO.
The heavyweight waters are particularly muddy now with Fury and Joshua having that financial structure agreed for a two-fight deal next year. But Fury has WBC mandatory Whyte as well as Wilder to consider, while even if he gets past Pulev, Joshua may have to first face the WBO mandatory Oleksandr Usyk (17-0) before getting to ‘The Gypsy King’.
Fury and Joshua currently hold all the major world heavyweight titles – Fury the WBC, Ring magazine and lineal crowns while Joshua is the IBF, WBA and WBO king.