'They chose the safer option' – Tyson Fury taunted by Oleksandr Usyk's team for taking Dillian Whyte fight
TYSON FURY has been accused of choosing 'the safer option' by fighting Dillian Whyte instead of Oleksandr Usyk.
The reigning heavyweight champions were in talks for a historic four-belt heavyweight unification in Saudi Arabia.
But for a deal to be agreed, Anthony Joshua would have had to forfeit his rematch with Usyk and Dillian Whyte step aside to do the same for his WBC title shot.
Eventually, AJ was unable to come to terms and later claimed Fury wanted a warm-up fight before facing Usyk, meaning he would need to sit out for two bouts.
The Gypsy King hit back and claimed Usyk, 35, would not have been ready until June, meaning they would take a interim opponent instead.
Now the Ukrainian's assistant coach Sergey Lapin has weighed in and blasted that Fury, 33, had always wanted to fight Whyte, 33 in the first place.
Speaking with MyBettingSites, Lapin said: “Usyk is always ready for any challenger, he was one of the first who agreed to hold a unification against Tyson Fury.
"I heard that Joshua wasn't against receiving the compensation either to allow the unification.
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"But suddenly something went wrong, it seems to me that Tyson Fury and his team chose a much safer option for themselves – a fight with Dillian Whyte."
Joshua's contracted rematch with Usyk, targeted for May or June, remains in doubt because of Ukraine's invasion of Russia.
The unbeaten two-weight champ has taken up arms to defend his nation enlisting with the Kyiv Territorial Defence.
It may allow Joshua, 32, beaten by Usyk in points in September, more time to work on a game plan, which Lapin believes will be more offensive.
He said: “I think Joshua will change his fighting strategy towards a more aggressive style.
"But will he be able to maintain this pace, will his conditioning be enough for this? We will only be able to see in the ring.
"That's the essence of boxing, not only big muscles and size playing a role here, it's very important how your boxing IQ works and how quickly you make decisions.
"Usyk will be preparing for the same Joshua, taking into account the mistakes of the previous fight.”
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