Tyson Fury should give up his WBC belt to avoid fighting Deontay Wilder and face Anthony Joshua instead, his father John says.
A unification fight with Joshua was set to happen on 14 August in Saudi Arabia.
But it fell through when Deontay Wilder’s team won an arbitration hearing stating the American had a right to a third fight with Fury.
“I’ve told him, in a phone conversation, to chuck the belt in the bin,” John Fury told BT Sport.
“Let them have it, come back and fight AJ on the 14 August like was planned. But I’m nobody unfortunately so it falls on deaf ears.”
Fury’s position as holder of the WBC belt was not critical in him facing Wilder for a third time but the contract he signed prior to their second fight was ultimately key to a forced third meeting.
The much anticipated fight between Fury and Joshua would have seen the pair contest all four world titles for the first time in the sport’s history.
Fury is the WBC champion while Joshua has the WBO, WBA and IBF belts.
Instead, Fury must now switch his focus to facing Wilder in Las Vegas on 24 July.
John Fury fears the rushed nature of the rematch could derail his son’s fight preparations and damage his chances of winning.
“For my money, it’s a mistake,” he added.
“Anything rushed is no good and that’s been rushed. He was fighting AJ, I want him to fight AJ, I’ve no interest in Deontay Wilder, so why’s he going to fight Wilder?
“I’m just concerned whether Tyson can raise his game for Wilder, whether he gets complacent, makes a mistake. It’s got every chance of going wrong out there because I don’t like how it’s been handled.”
Article courtesy of BBC Sport
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