Tyson Fury has told Dillian Whyte he will "let the wars begin" despite talks beginning for an undisputed title fight with Oleksandr Usyk.
Fury and Whyte are mandated to fight for his WBC heavyweight title, while Usyk is contractually obligated to have a rematch with Anthony Joshua for his unified WBA, WBO and IBF belts.
But the purse bid has been delayed on a number of occasions for Fury and Whyte's bout, as the Londoner remains at odds with the governing body over the massive 80-20 purse split that has been ordered for the bout.
And last week, Fury's promoter Bob Arum confirmed that the heavyweight division was "in chaos" after an offer came in from the Middle East to stage an undisputed title fight, which included step aside money for Whyte and Joshua.
But Fury has now teased that his next opponent will be Whyte, telling his rival in an Instagram post: "Good man, let the wars begin".
Whyte was responding to the constant chatter around the top of the division when he posted a video tagging Fury, Joshua and promoter Eddie Hearn.
The caption for the video, which appears to be taken just after an intense training session, reads: "I just want f***ing war, that's all I want is to go to war with the best.
"F*** all this he said she said bulls***."
Fury's American promoter Arum revealed last week ahead of yet another delayed Fury vs Whyte purse bid that the Usyk bout was becoming a possibility.
He said that people who are uninvolved in Fury's career were getting involved and messing up the situation, and the purse bid was ultimately delayed again until tomorrow.
"It is total chaos,” Arum told talkSPORT. “What’s happening is just promises coming out of the Middle East about doing a unified fight with Usyk and Fury, and is Dillian Whyte going to step aside.
“And people that have absolutely no contractual ties – like Frank Warren’s Queensberry and our Top Rank do – are getting involved.
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“It’s a typical terrible kind of situation, but hopefully it’ll get sorted out and probably it will get sorted out with a purse bid."
Fury is said to have a date booked for March 26 at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff for his next bout, with the WBC allowing him to fight without the belt on the line if a deal with Whyte can't be agreed.
Joshua and Usyk are supposed to fight the following month, with April 23 a rumoured date, although Hearn confirmed to Mirror Fighting last week that it had yet to be locked in.
Hearn also explained that he believes it's more likely fans will see the two obligated fights before the winners face off for the undisputed title later in the year.
Fury is desperate to remain active after taking almost three years off following his world title win in 2015 due to mental health issues, and then being forced out again by coronavirus restrictions in 2020 and 2021.
