At least so thinks Oleksandr Usyk’s promoter, Alexander Krassyuk, who remains skeptical about the possibility of a unification fight with Tyson Fury. Although the World Boxing Association was informed last Friday that Fury and Usyk had tentatively agreed to fight on April 29 of 2023 at Wembley Stadium, Krassyuk is not convinced that the fight will take place.
Previously, the WBA had urged both fighters to reach an agreement, or else Usyk would be ordered to make a mandatory defense against Daniel Dubois. Usyk agreed to Fury's request for a 70-30 monetary split, on the condition that Fury donates $1 million to Ukraine, Usyk's home country, which is currently in a military conflict with Russia. However, Krassyuk believes that Fury is intentionally making new demands as a tactical move to prevent the fight from happening.
“As Usyk said, the greedy belly Fury is still hoping to find a way to pull out. We knew before and know it now. As soon as Usyk accepts a no-rematch clause there will still be searching for another thing to find and pull out of the fight. I’ll tell you why. He bluffed and Usyk called his bluff. This is 100 percent. He didn't expect Usyk to accept 70-30,” Krassyuk said in the interview to Talk Sport.
“It’s all about nothing. He’s not prepared and scared to fight. He will try to find a way to avoid Usyk for as long as possible. We don’t trust him, we don’t believe him. I don’t believe anyone will fight. Even if you accept this now, he will still try to find a way out.”
Image Credit: Sky Sports