"WBC President confirms Deontay Wilder v Tyson Fury IS CLOSE"
World Boxing Council President Mauricio Sulaiman is waiting for final confirmation of heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder's next title defense against Tyson Fury.
Wilder and Fury opened talks after Anthony Joshua's decision to reject an offer of $50m for the fight, with his biggest UK rival now set to fill the void in the Showtime Pay-Per-View slot.
The fight is pencilled in for November in Las Vegas and Sulaiman said he did all he could to help Wilder's quest to secure Joshua for a huge undisputed unification.
"The WBC has done everything possible to see this great fight happen. I will be thrilled to see it happen (one day), which is a must as that is what the fans of the world want," Sulaiman told Sky Sports.
"It seems that Wilder will fight Tyson Fury next. We are waiting for an official sanction request from the promoter," he added.
The WBC's mandatory situation will be placed on hold whilst Wilder and Fury lock horns this year, with Dominic Breazeale forced to wait his turn after earning his shot with a victory over Eric Molina.
Wȁɍɍȅn confident he can make Fury vs. Wilder happen before the end of the year"
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Enlightened-One
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Re: Wȁɍɍȅn confident he can make Fury vs. Wilder happen before the end of the year"
Looks like Breazeale is out of the running at least
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Enlightened-One
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Re: Wȁɍɍȅn confident he can make Fury vs. Wilder happen before the end of the year"
"Deontay Wilder vs. Tyson Fury bout 'very, very close' Showtime executive says"
Just how close is the deal for the fight between heavyweight world titleholder Deontay Wilder and former world champion Tyson Fury?
Very, if you listen to Showtime Sports president Stephen Espinoza, who is involved in the deal because his network would televise the proposed fight on Showtime PPV on either Nov. 10 or Nov. 17 from Las Vegas.
"It is very, very close. There isn't anything signed yet between Tyson and Deontay or their respective promoters, but it's very, very close," Espinoza said in an interview on this week's The Boxing Beat, the weekly ESPN+ boxing news and interview show. "Whether it's 95 percent or 99 percent, it is very, very close. I think we'll have paperwork imminently and the plan is for a Showtime Pay-Per-View [card] -- pair it with a really interesting fight. We don't know what it is yet, but something that will definitely communicate that the fans are getting their money's worth."
Shelly Finkel, Wilder's co-manager, and Fɍȁnk Wȁɍɍȅn, Fury's promoter, have also said in recent days that the fight, in discussions for about a month, is close to being finalized.
Even if the Wilder and Fury camps agree to a deal, Fury will first have to win the second fight of his comeback on Aug. 18, when he is scheduled to face former two-time world title challenger Francesco Pianeta (35-4-1, 21 KOs) in a 10-round bout at Windsor Park in Belfast, Northern Ireland, on the undercard of interim featherweight titleholder Carl Frampton's first defense against Luke Jackson.
In preparation for the probable Wilder-Fury fight, Showtime on Tuesday announced it had acquired the United States rights to the Aug. 18 card, which it will stream live on the Showtime Boxing Facebook and Showtime Sports YouTube platforms beginning at 4 p.m. ET with a prime-time replay scheduled to air on Showtime Extreme at 10 p.m. ET.
Just how close is the deal for the fight between heavyweight world titleholder Deontay Wilder and former world champion Tyson Fury?
Very, if you listen to Showtime Sports president Stephen Espinoza, who is involved in the deal because his network would televise the proposed fight on Showtime PPV on either Nov. 10 or Nov. 17 from Las Vegas.
"It is very, very close. There isn't anything signed yet between Tyson and Deontay or their respective promoters, but it's very, very close," Espinoza said in an interview on this week's The Boxing Beat, the weekly ESPN+ boxing news and interview show. "Whether it's 95 percent or 99 percent, it is very, very close. I think we'll have paperwork imminently and the plan is for a Showtime Pay-Per-View [card] -- pair it with a really interesting fight. We don't know what it is yet, but something that will definitely communicate that the fans are getting their money's worth."
Shelly Finkel, Wilder's co-manager, and Fɍȁnk Wȁɍɍȅn, Fury's promoter, have also said in recent days that the fight, in discussions for about a month, is close to being finalized.
Even if the Wilder and Fury camps agree to a deal, Fury will first have to win the second fight of his comeback on Aug. 18, when he is scheduled to face former two-time world title challenger Francesco Pianeta (35-4-1, 21 KOs) in a 10-round bout at Windsor Park in Belfast, Northern Ireland, on the undercard of interim featherweight titleholder Carl Frampton's first defense against Luke Jackson.
In preparation for the probable Wilder-Fury fight, Showtime on Tuesday announced it had acquired the United States rights to the Aug. 18 card, which it will stream live on the Showtime Boxing Facebook and Showtime Sports YouTube platforms beginning at 4 p.m. ET with a prime-time replay scheduled to air on Showtime Extreme at 10 p.m. ET.