UFC boss Dana White has slammed Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk for their "shocking" delays to making an undisputed world heavyweight title fight this year.
The two world heavyweight champions are insisting they'll fight at Wembley Stadium on April 29, but no announcement has been forthcoming with just over a month to go until showtime. And it appears that with each passing day it becomes less likely that the pair will compete in the first undisputed heavyweight fight of the four belt era.
And White has joked that while it is "shocking" that the fight hasn't been made, it isn't a shock given boxing's history of missing out on big events when athletes are at their prime. Having started in combat as a fan of the sport, the UFC boss even admitted that he based the structure of his MMA promotion on the frustrations he felt missing out on the best fights.
"It's scheduled, no?" White asked when quizzed about the delay by Mirror Fighting last night in London. "Oh it's not? Welcome to boxing, boys. Is it shocking? Yes. Is it 'shocking'? No. It's just that is boxing, that's the way that that sport always seems to play out, the big fights that should happen never happen.
"And when they do, it's always late and that's the stuff that used to drive me crazy as a fan and it's literally part of how I designed this company to not be. We try to make the big fights when it's time to make the big fights. Think about this; tonight [at UFC 286] on the prelims you saw an 11-0 vs 10-0 [Lerone Murphy vs Gabriel Santos].
"That's on the prelims! Tell me any show with any organisation anywhere where they have two [guys like that]. And that fight was technically incredible, right? You don't see that stuff ever, except here and that's by design."
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It appeared last week that Fury and Usyk had agreed to a meeting at Wembley Stadium towards the end of next month, after the Brit insisted on a massive 70-30 split and no rematch clause and his rival succumbed. But despite private assurances to the WBA that they would be fighting, insiders appear concerned that the bout has not been announced yet.
And if they miss out on such a meeting, it would be yet another undisputed bout to fall by the wayside. Fury himself was unable to face Anthony Joshua in 2021 due to a contractual dispute for all of the belts, while his fellow Brit could also never strike a deal with Deontay Wilder back when the American held WBC gold and he was WBO, IBF and WBA super champion.
Fury has taken a 'social media hiatus' as is customary for his fight promotions, but no press conference to launch the bout has been confirmed as yet. There are just over 41 days until the bout would take place, and negotiations appear to be at a standstill with Usyk more likely to face Daniel Dubois next.
