Deontay Wilder has claimed Anthony Joshua did not want to fight him during their "six-month rollercoaster" talks in 2018.
Wilder was defeated by Tyson Fury in their trilogy bout last year and contemplated his future in the ring, but has announced his return against Robert Helenius on October 11 at the Barclays Center, New York. One of the key factors in deciding to make a comeback was a potential fight against Joshua, according to his manager Shelly Finkel, with plans to make the fight after his rival's recent rematch defeat by Oleksandr Usyk.
The pair previously held talks over a fight with the undisputed titles on the line back in 2018, but a bout failed to come to fruition as Wilder elected to begin his epic rivalry with Fury at the end of that year. However, the 'Bronze Bomber' believes his rivalry with Joshua could be rekindled.
"Everybody picked me to beat Joshua and that’s the reason why they [Joshua's team] didn’t want to make the fight before," Wilder said during an interview with ES News. "That was the reason why they took me on a six-month rollercoaster, because they did everything to avoid the fight [with me]. They did not want to fight.
"Fast forward years and now we’re seeing it [the Joshua team wanting to make the fight with Wilder]. We’ll see [if it happens] because we ain’t bull*****ing. I hate talking about those guys because they put a bad taste in my mouth every time. These promoters, managers and s*** like that get in the way of big fights happening because of their greed.
"Boxing is a business and I’m here, to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. I have no reason to lie in this gladiator sport but some people are choosing not to believe what I say when I tell the truth."
Who would win if the pair fought now - Anthony Joshua or Deontay Wilder? Let us know in the comments section below!
Wilder is understood to have held extensive talks with Joshua over the undisputed fight in 2018, with the Brit's promoter, Eddie Hearn, making the next offer. The 'Bronze Bomber' then made a mega counter offer of $50million (£43m) to Joshua's team, but this was rejected.
A back and forth continued between the pair which was made increasingly complex by Joshua's outstanding mandatory challenge against Alexander Povetkin. The proposed fight eventually collapsed, which saw Joshua beat the Russian instead. Wilder then went on to face Fury for a first time and even admitted he handed the 'Gypsy King' his title shot after his epic comeback story.
Hearn recently suggested prior to Joshua's defeat by Usyk that he had made an offer to Wilder but was left answerless despite the money at stake. "I have got so much money for Wilder in an offer, but they never come back to me," Hearn told Seconds Out. "I don't know whether Deontay Wilder doesn't want to hear about that offer but whatever."
