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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Martin Domin

Anthony Joshua admits he wanted "huge stack of money" to agree Tyson Fury deal

Anthony Joshua has admitted he would have considered stepping aside to allow Tyson Fury to fight Oleksandr Usyk - for the right price.

Joshua will attempt to win back his three heavyweight world titles when he takes on the Ukrainian in May or June.

But he had held talks over giving up his shot at his old belts to allow Fury and Usyk to clash for the undisputed crown.

But those discussions broke down and Fury will instead defend his title against Dillian Whyte in April, just weeks before Joshua's revenge mission.

The two winners are then slated to meet later in the year to crown the first undisputed heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis in 1999.

Anthony Joshua will fight Oleksandr Usyk for a second time (Getty Images)

And Joshua insists he was never serious about stepping aside - unless he was offered a nine-figure sum.

"I asked them for a big stack of dough which I knew they wouldn't be able to get. If they did get it I would have considered it but they didn't get it," he told iFL TV.

"I'm focused on the Oleksandr Usyk rematch. If it was hundreds of millions, I'd have been like, 'yeah, let's look at it' but it wasn't. I want to fight and the money will come if I go out there and win.

"Money comes with success so I'd rather do what I can do in the ring, get revenge and get the belts back."

Joshua's second clash with Usyk is likely to take place at either the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium or in the Middle East.

Should Anthony Joshua have stepped aside? Let us know in the comments section below

Promoter Eddie Hearn expects a deal to be signed within the next two weeks, and said: "Usyk's got a lot on his plate at the moment from a personal perspective and we respect that, but we're working to determine where the fight is going to take place."

And Joshua added: "The principles remain the same; ring, ref, judges, fight. It doesn't matter where it is."

Joshua was comprehensively outpointed by Usyk last September as he lost his belts for the second time in four fights.

He will now aim to repeat his rematch victory over Andy Ruiz Jr in 2019 which saw regain his belts in Saudi Arabia.

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