Anthony Joshua Hits Back At Reports That He Is 'Close To Accepting' A Step-Aside Deal

Anthony Joshua has rubbished rumours that he's "close to accepting" a £15million deal to step-aside from his rematch with Oleksandr Usyk.

It would tee up a truly historic bout to decide who is the undisputed heavyweight king, but Joshua isn't onboard with the idea at all, despite previous claims.

The man himself has now come out and hit back at the reports, insisting he hasn't even seen this apparent multi-million-dollar contract.

Speaking in a video posted on Twitter by TalkSport's boxing editor Michael Benson, Joshua said: "You know what's mad about all these interviews I see? I see certain interviews that quote what I said and I think to myself: 'I haven't done no interviews.'

"I'm hearing people saying: 'AJ accepts £15m to step aside'. I ain't signed no contract. I ain't seen no contract. So as it stands, stop listening to the bulls**t until it comes from me. I'm the man in control of my own destiny, I'm the man that handles my business.

"I'm a smart individual and I make calculated decisions every step of the way. Don't listen to the bulls**t from other sources. If I tell you something then you know it's real."

For Usyk, he probably doesn't care who he locks horns with - it'll be a big pay cheque either way.

But for Fury, he looks destined to take on WBC mandatory challenger and former sparring partner Dillian Whyte, although reports suggest Whyte could accept a £5m step-aside fee to allow the unification bout to take place.

"It's a saga but if we can keep things between us, we can get something over the line one way or another," Fury's US promoter Bob Arum said.

"Everybody in boxing wants to see the undisputed fight between Tyson and Usyk, I want to see it just as a fan.

"So that is the fight we are trying to make."