Tyson Fury will not be pressured into deciding whether or not to vacate his heavyweight world title after defeating Dillian Whyte.
The 'Gypsy King' reiterated his plans to retire from boxing after a sixth-round stoppage victory over Whyte at Wembley last month. It was expected Fury would be given a deadline to decide if he wished to vacate his WBC title, with talks planned in the coming weeks.
But WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman will give his champion time to decide - and anticipates Fury's former foe Deontay Wilder will be given a shot at the belt if the champion relinquishes his title. "We're going to give him the time he needs to reflect, to relax, he just did the mandatory of the division," Sulaiman told Planet Sport. "There's no hurry to pressure him or his team into making any decisions. We will be in communications, he's having a holiday with his family.
"I'm not saying we will get him three months, there's no time limit right now I'm respecting the level of Tyson Fury, his private time with his family but we will talk in the near future certainly. We need to address the situation if he is retiring but at this time, we are just giving him the much deserved time to enjoy his holidays.
"Wilder is the No.1 contender and you have Joe Joyce at No.2, three is Joseph Parker. I believe [Joyce and Parker] are going to have a fight for the WBO interim championship - we've had no confirmation but we will just wait and see what happens. There are some variables playing around there."
Fury remains undefeated in his boxing career and has admitted on multiple occasions he has completed all of his targets after winning all of the belts separately at both world and domestic level during his career. However the prospect of a shot at becoming the first undisputed champion since Lennox Lewis in 2000 could tempt him back with Anthony Joshua and Oleksandr Usyk set to meet again in July.
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Fury has remained firm on his plans to retire despite confirming he would entertain an offer to face Francis Ngannou in a crossover bout. Figures close to Fury including his wife Paris and father John have also suggested the champion would consider returning to the ring if it is Joshua who can secure revenge against Usyk this summer.
Fury's co-promoter Frank Warren has firmly stated the champion will not be forced into any rushed decision from the WBC. “No-one’s going to tell Tyson Fury what to do,” he said. “The only person who will tell Tyson Fury what to do will be Paris or himself.
“There’s nothing for the WBC to assess. I don’t see any relevance because there’s no mandatory due, so what are they going to talk about? Why would they strip him? He’s got no mandatory due. The only time he gets stripped is if he doesn’t fulfil his mandatory and he’s just had one, that’s it."
