Oleksandr Usyk elected to take a phone call during a heated altercation with Tyson Fury which saw his rival screaming in his face.
Fury returned to action last night for the first time since beating Dillian Whyte in April, when he dominated and stopped Derek Chisora in a trilogy bout at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. A win appears to have now set up an undisputed title clash with Usyk who was ringside for the event in London and came to confront his rival.
The 'Gypsy King' clambered out of the ring following his success to confront Usyk about a potential showdown and proceeded to scream in his face with a hefty X-rated threat sequence. However the Ukrainian was entirely unmoved by his rival's brash talking antics, and then British star Joe Joyce entered the equation.
While Fury continued screaming, Usyk took a phone call before Joyce began putting his word on the line to try and ensure he is part of the equation for a title fight next year. Fans enjoyed Usyk's distraction as he seemed totally uninterested in the name-calling of the WBC champion.
One wrote: "Fury trying his hardest to goad and intimate Usyk during their face off whereas Usyk is like 'sorry mate I got a phone call can you be quiet?'." Another agreed: "Usyk taking a phone call half way through a weird barrage of insults from Tyson is f****** brilliant."
A fan even added: "Usyk taking a phone call while Tyson Fury is yelling in his face was the highlight of the whole fight." The potential challenger to Fury's undefeated record was greeted with boos from British fans in the arena having stated his claim to a clash for all the marbles in 2023.
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Fury had shouted in his face: "Where's Oleksandr Usyk, the rabbit?! Hey, rabbit! Usyk, you're next little b****, you're next. You are next! Me and you, sucker, next. Me and you! You're getting it, little sucker. Rabbit! P****! Look, a 15-stone little midget beat a bodybuilder. But I ain't a bodybuilder, sucker. I'm gonna write you off!"
The unified champion recently beat Anthony Joshua in an August rematch to retain his belts for the first time, and immediately leapt on the mic himself to call for the clash. It was met by immediate acceptance by Fury who was eager to get the fight completed before the turn of the year. However after plotting a date this month in the Middle East with lucrative backing arriving, Usyk declared he would not be ready in time and the fight was briefly shelved.
And the British star is now confident a bout will take place in 2023 after the face-to-face altercation. He said: "I said to him [Prince Khalid], 'Let's not mess around, let's get this fight over the line'. He said, 'What do you think I'm here for? I'm here to put it on'. Let's hope it can be made for early next year and we can get on with it."
