Anthony Joshua takes on Oleksandr Usyk on Saturday, August 20 for the WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, and IBO heavyweight titles, with the Ukrainian having won the titles after beating 'AJ' in their first fight which took place at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last September.
However, they will now fight for a new title, with news of Tyson Fury's retirement meaning that he has vacated the Ring heavyweight title and could also vacate his WBC belt with a deadline of August 26 to make a decision whether or not to confirm his retirement and vacate that belt.
This deadline means that the WBC belt won't be up for grabs in this contest, but it could be on the line should the winner wish to fight Deontay Wilder in the future, with the Bronze Bomber currently the top ranked contender with the Mexico City based governing body.
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However, despite the revelations in recent days regarding Fury's retirement, many believe that the decision could yet be reversed with the heavyweight champion having made a number of contradictory claims regarding his future since his win over Dillian Whyte on April 23.
WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman told Izquierdo confirmed that the deadline had been issued to Fury's promoter Frank Warren and that they had ten days to confirm their position, with Warren having made no comment yet.
“We had a conversation with his promoter, and we gave him ten days, until the 26th [of August], so they can send us a written confirmation of his final decision," he said. “With that, we can proceed to address the situation with the belt.
“We will wait until August 26th. That is our deadline to have a formal confirmation of their final decision. We have no rush. He has been a big hero inside the ring and out of it”.
