GOOD MORNING BOXING FANS
Anthony Joshua’s scrap with Tyson Fury is now on the backburner after the British champ was ordered to face Oleksandr Usyk.
WBA, IBF and WBO champion AJ was given a 48-hour deadline by the WBO on Wednesday to salvage his planned clash with the WBC title holder Fury.
It hasn’t been met and therefore the WBO have stepped in demanding AJ needs to fulfil his mandatory defence against Usyk.
And they have put extra pressure on the fighters to secure the deal by handing them just 10 days to negotiate.
If a deal can’t be landed in that time, a purse bid ceremony will be called immediately per WBO rules.
Meanwhile, Usyk’s promoter has told Sky Sports that Wembley Stadium could be the venue for an August bout between his man and Joshua.
Alexander Krassyuk said: “WBO has to issue the official enforcement for the mandatory today.
“According to my knowledge, AJ is ready to take the challenge.
“It may happen anywhere including Wembley, but yet no serious venue commitments have been made.”
Finally, Fury has teased at a career swansong in WWE after hanging up his gloves.
The Gypsy King made his wrestling debut in 2019, making an instant impact by KOing Braun Strowman at Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia.
It appears his son, Prince John James, is eager to follow in his footsteps after attending WWE WrestleMania Backlash.
Prince got the chance to mingle with wrestling’s biggest names including Rey Mysterio and chief Vince McMahon.
Fury uploaded a picture to Instagram and captioned it: “the big boss man @wwe I’m coming for that contract in a few years boss.”
