Former WBO, WBA, IBF heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua has debunked rumours that he has agreed to a step-aside fee to allow Tyson Fury face Oleksandr Usyk instead of him. According to Joshua, no contract has been presented to him, and he has not agreed to anything yet: “I see certain interviews that quote what I said, and I think to myself: ‘I ain’t done no interviews. Where did this person get this information from?’

“I’m hearing people saying, ‘AJ accepts £15m to step aside’. I ain’t signed no contract, I ain’t seen no contract.”

This is not the first time the issue of Joshua possibly stepping aside would come up. Every time it does come up, Joshua would be quick to remind us that he is very much interested in fighting Usyk, who he lost the title to last year September.

Stepping aside would mean WBO heavyweight champion Tyson Fury would get to face Usyk next for an undisputed championship bout – something the world has been looking forward to for a while now. Fury has also made it seem like he would be doing Joshua a favour by offering to face Usyk, as he believes he (Joshua) would not be able to defeat Usyk the second time they meet. Joshua can them face him to win all four titles.

Fury has some issues of his to sort out, as he is expected to face Dillian Whyte next. The winner of Joshua vs Usyk is expected to face the winner of Fury vs Whyte in an undisputed championship bout. While that makes sense, there are those who want the undisputed fight to happen sooner, hence the pressure, from Fury’s camp, on Joshua to step aside.

The decision on who Fury would face next would be revealed this week, and that would set things in motion for heavyweight fights this yea.

Written by: Leon Osamor