By Jake Tiernan: WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman says his organization won’t order heavyweight champion Tyson Fury’s next mandatory yet because their previous attempt at ordering an eliminator between Andy Ruiz Jr. & Deontay Wilder failed to produce a fight between them.
Interestingly, Sulaiman says he doesn’t want to order another WBC title eliminator because he doesn’t want to “impede” the possibility of an undisputed championship between Fury & IBF, WBA & WBO champion Oleksandr Usyk.
Fury has already ruled out a fight with Usyk, saying it’s not a big money fight and also he would be criticized if he lost. Further, Tyson said that he intends on taking a cage match next after his October 28th crossover match against MMA fighter Franciso Ngannou in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The WBC will have to decide whether they want to stand by and allow Fury to freeze the title and use it as a marketing tool while he faces non-boxers or do the right thing by stripping him.
If Fury wants to fight non-boxers, he must do that as a beltless ex-champion and not hold the belt hostage.
“We took a definite position of ordering [Deontay] Wilder against [Andy] Ruiz for the mandatory position. That fight has not taken place,” said WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman to Boxing Social about why his organization has failed to order another mandatory for Tyson Fury, who last defended against his mandatory 17 months ago in April 2022 against Dillian Whyte.
“Maybe it’s not taking place, and why push for any other mandatory that does not have the level of Tyson Fury that would impede and be in the way of Fury fighting Usyk?
“We took the high road and want to do the unified, undisputed fight, and we’re taking that position,” said Sulaiman, who fails to understand that Fury has said that he’s not interested in fighting Usyk because it’s not a big money match, and it’s a lose-lose for him.
“We’re not taking any opportunity away from any other fighter. They are moving up in ranks, and Wilder-Ruiz was a true fight for a mandatory position, but we’re just waiting.
“Of course, he [Fury] can fight [Francis] Ngannou. He [Fury] tried to fight Usyk and tried to fight Joshua, and tried to fight Ruiz. Nobody is taking the fights with Fury.
“Then we will see after Ngannou, and we will meet at the convention and order a fight for the [WBC] for the mandatory position,” said Sulaiman.
