Deontay Wilder has claimed he was "locked into insurance" in a previous fight deal with Anthony Joshua after his second defeat to Oleksandr Usyk.
Joshua was looking to get his redemption and regain his unified heavyweight world titles last night in Saudi Arabia but he was once again outboxed by his rival despite showing more positive glimpses. The Briton was left frustrated by the Ukrainian and left the ring with a series of frustrated outbursts as he now faces a period of isolation from the belts.
A whole host of potential opponents could now emerge for Joshua after his loss including a shot at Wilder who has previously held talks with the Briton on multiple occasions. Wilder issued his reaction to his rival's defeat, tweeting: They tried to lock me in for insurance because they knew he wasn’t going to win. This is strictly a business not a sport there’s a difference."
It is likely Wilder was addressing a series of failed negotiations between the pair to secure an undisputed title fight on previous occasions. Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn had offered Wilder a deal worth around $12.5 million to secure the bout after Joshua unified the division once again when beating Joseph Parker.
However Wilder surprised Hearn with a mammoth counter offer of $50 million for Joshua who elected to reject the offer but it didn't initially shut down the fight. Joshua was running out of time and after Hearn tabled a new offer of around $15 million to salvage the bout and hold it in the UK, the fight collapsed with Joshua left instead to face WBA mandatory challenger Alexander Povetkin.
Wilder instead fought in a series of epic trilogy battles with Joshua's rival Tyson Fury which despite losing his belt has left him regarded as the No.1 contender for Fury's WBC belt if he elects to vacate. Wilder's manager has constantly stated that a fight with Joshua remains high on his priority list before Joshua's defeat to Usyk.
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Hearn also revealed he has made an offer to Wilder with a large cash pot available but was left on deaf ears prior to his charge's third career defeat. Now there remains a heightened possibility of the pair meeting with Joshua left far away from settling his rivalry with Fury.
Despite now needing another bounce back from defeat, Joshua has vowed to become three-time heavyweight champion and is eyeing a ring return later this year. "So I spoke to Eddie and I asked if it was possible to get out in November because I think momentum is important of boxing," Joshua said at the post-fight press conference.
"About who I fight. Come one and come all I will fight anybody." His promoter Hearn added: "I would like to see him get out in December and I would like to see him have three to four fights next year and start enjoying himself again and working his way back up to the championship belts."
