Anthony Joshua hits back at ‘b******t’ claims he’s accepted £15m step aside offer to allow Tyson Fury v Oleksandr Usyk title fight

Anthony Joshua has hit back at ‘b******t’ claims he’s accepted a £15m step aside offer to allow an undisputed world title fight between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk.

Former British world champion Joshua activated a rematch clause to fight Usyk for the WBA, IBF and WBO heavyweight belts, following the Ukrainian’s impressive victory in London in September.

But recent reports have claimed Joshua was set to accept a £15m deal to step aside and allow Usyk to fight WBC champion Fury for all the belts.

Responding to the speculation, Joshua said: ‘You know what’s bad about all these interviews I see? I see interviews that quote what I said, I think to myself, I ain’t done no interviews.

‘Where did this person get this information from? I see people saying “AJ accepts £15m to step aside.”

‘I ain’t signed no contract, I ain’t seen no contract. As it stands, stop listening to the b*****t until it comes from me.

‘I’m the man in control of my destiny. I’m the man who handles my business. I’m a smart individual and I make calculated decisions every step of the way.

‘Don’t listen to the b******t from other sources. If I tell you something then you know it’s real.’

Fury put his rivalry with Deontay Wilder to bed with a stunning victory over the American in October. The 33-year-old is yet to agree a mandatory defence of his WBC title against Britain’s Dillian Whyte.

Joshua’s promoter, Matchroom chief Eddie Hearn, has also discussed the possibility of his fighter stepping aside and freeing up a stunning bout between Fury and Usyk.

Eddie Hearn told Sky Sports: ‘I’m meeting with AJ and 258 management [on Tuesday] to go through plans for his next fight.

<p lang=«en» dir=«ltr» xml:lang=«en»>Anthony Joshua fires back at reports that he is “close to