Anthony Joshua has labelled Tyson Fury "a fraud" in a furious social media exchange after the news that their heavyweight boxing showdown might be off.
The pair looked set for a bout in August, but an arbitration hearing ruled Fury must first fight American Deontay Wilder.
"You've let boxing down. You lied to the fans and led them on. Used my name for clout not a fight," tweeted Joshua.
.@Tyson_Fury the world now sees you for the fraud you are.
— Anthony Joshua (@anthonyjoshua) May 19, 2021
You’ve let boxing down!
You lied to the fans and led them on. Used my name for clout not a fight.
Bring me any championship fighter who can handle their business correctly.
In response, Fury challenged Joshua to a bare-knuckle fight.
The teams behind the two British heavyweights have engaged in lengthy negotiations to get what has been billed as one of the biggest in heavyweight boxing for decades over the line.
Joshua's promoter Eddie Hearn was adamant their fight was agreed and earlier this week Fury told his Instagram followers he too has signed off on a 14 August bout in Saudi Arabia.
Just 24 hours later, Wilder's team - who had always said he had a contract in place for a third Fury fight - found out their arbitration hearing was successful.
Fury claims the American has requested nearly $30m to step aside and allow the Joshua bout to go ahead.
Hearn has since stated the situation is now out of his control and has set Fury's team a deadline of the end of the week to resolve their situation with Wilder.
Hearn is considering alternative plans, notably a contest between Joshua and Ukraine's Oleksandr Usyk, who is mandatory challenger for the WBO title.
Joshua holds the WBO, WBA and IBF belts, meaning a bout with Fury would have been the first at heavyweight for all four world titles.
-Reuters
