Tyson Fury has approved a fight with David Benavidez should his Battle of Britain with Anthony Joshua not go ahead. In stunning developments overnight, the fight that took over a decade to make appears to be in danger of falling through just three days after it was officially announced, with Fury accusing Joshua and his promoter Eddie Hearn of 'pulling out'.
Fury's accusations and Alalshikh's search
'The Gypsy King' claimed in an Instagram video shared overnight that Turki Alalshikh is currently in the process of trying to find him a new opponent for that December date in the Welsh capital. 'AJ, pull your finger out you little white-flagged, yellow-bellied coward,' Fury said. 'Now you've got Turki Alalshikh finding alternative real men who will fight at the drop of a hat. So I hope you are happy you cowardly b*****ds.'
Benavidez as the potential replacement
Mike Coppinger of The Ring Magazine, a publication owned by Alalshikh, reported overnight that Benavidez is one name being considered to step in and replace Joshua. Fury has appeared to endorse that idea, sharing a fight poster of the two for that same date in Cardiff weeks before Christmas.
Benavidez is already a world champion in three different weight classes, having become the youngest super-middleweight champion in history almost a decade ago. Having also won world title gold at light-heavyweight, he claimed the WBA and WBO cruiserweight titles in May this year after knocking out Gilberto Ramirez. Moving up to heavyweight would represent another huge step against Fury, one of the true giants of the division.
Comparisons and press conference uncertainty
It would be a journey similar to that of Oleksandr Usyk, a natural cruiserweight who unified the division before moving up to heavyweight, where he would also reign as undisputed king. A press conference to formally unveil Fury vs Joshua was set to be held in London on Wednesday.
Wednesday's official fight announcement stated Alalshikh 'will collaborate to promote this historic showdown' with no mention of Hearn's name in the release. Hearn, who has promoted Joshua for his entire professional career, was not named in the official press release and has publicly claimed the UFC president cannot be involved.
