Anthony Joshua 'To Accept £15m Step-Aside Fee To Allow Tyson Fury To Face Oleksandr Usyk'

Anthony Joshua is set to accept a £15m step-aside fee to allow Tyson Fury to face Oleksandr Usyk for the undisputed heavyweight crown.

Joshua lost his WBA, IBF and WBO belts in a unanimous decision defeat to Usyk in September but was expected to face the Ukrainian in a rematch later this year.

However, the British fighter is reportedly ready to accept a huge fee to allow Usyk to face WBC champion Tyson Fury, who beat Deontay Wilder in their trilogy fight in October.

Usyk beat Joshua to claim the WBA, WBO and IBF heavyweight world title (Image: Alamy)

According to The Telegraph, Joshua is now prepared to step aside after a 'weekend of protracted talks' between all parties.

It could pave the way for Fury to face Usyk in huge fight in the Middle East, with the Principality Stadium in Cardiff also reserved for the 'Gypsy King' to fight on March 26.

Should Joshua accept the step-aside money and forgo his rematch, he would almost certainly face the winner of Fury-Usyk.

But the deal is further complicated by Dillian Whyte, who is currently mandatory challenger for Fury’s WBC title.

Fury successfully defended the WBC title against Deontay Wilder (Image: Alamy)

The pair were due to face each other early this year but negotiations stalled over fighter pay, with Whyte reportedly unhappy with an 80-20 split in favour of Fury.

However, reports suggest Whyte could be willing to accept a £5m step-aside fee to allow Fury-Usyk to happen.

Fury’s US promoter Bob Arum is hopeful a deal can be agreed between all parties.

“It’s a saga but if we can keep things between us, we can get something over the line one way or another,” he said.

Joshua would be expected to face the winner of Fury-Usyk if he steps aside (Image: Alamy)

“Everybody in boxing wants to see the undisputed fight between Tyson and Usyk, I want to see it just as a fan.

“So that is the fight we are trying to make.”

Should Fury face Usyk, the heavyweight division could be unified for the first time since Lennox Lewis achieved the feat in 1999.

Lewis was crowned undisputed champion after beating Evander Holyfield via unanimous decision, before the WBA stripped him of his world title the following year for failing to face their mandatory challenger, John Ruiz.

Topics: Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury, Oleksandr Usyk, Dillian Whyte, Heavyweight Boxing, Boxing

Rory O'Callaghan

Rory O'Callaghan is Editorial Lead at SPORTbible. He has previously worked for Sky Sports News, MailOnline and Reach covering football, cricket, boxing and MMA. Tested daily as a Liverpool fan in a Manchester office.

@rory_ocallaghan