Tyson Fury has reignited his rivalry with Anthony Joshua once again, goading his fellow heavyweight by stating his career is 'over' ahead of his rematch with Oleksandr Usyk.
Joshua suffered defeat to Usyk at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in September, conceding his three heavyweight belts and leaving hopes of a unification bout against Fury as a pipe dream.
Optimism for that fight was renewed last month amid a stand-off in negotiations between Fury and Dillian Whyte, his WBC mandated opponent, with persistent talk that Joshua could step aside.
That would have propelled Fury into an immediate unification bout with Usyk, with the winner going on to face Joshua.
However, those proposals collapsed and Fury will return to the ring, likely in April, to defend his belt against Whyte, while Joshua seeks redemption against Usyk.
While winning the belts back is AJ's priority, Fury has given his assessment on his chances and painted a grim picture for his fellow Brit.
"So do I think he is a great fighter? Hell no. I think he is a useless bum," he told ESPN.
"Then he fought a boxer half his size and a foot shorter than him and got outboxed. He fought a boxer half his weight, a foot shorter than him and got out-boxed.
"He's a useless old bum and won't get past Oleksandr Usyk in his next fight. His career's over. If you think going into a boxing fight for the world heavyweight title is not trying to win, yeah I would give him that title."
Fury and Joshua were due to meet in a huge unification bout last year but an American judge ruled the Gypsy King needed to honour his rematch with Deontay Wilder.
