Deontay Wilder accepts terms for Anthony Joshua unification fight in UK

He tweeted: “BREAKING NEWS for all you Anthony Joshua fans… The $50m offer for him to fight me next in the US is still available.

“Today I even agreed to their offer to fight Joshua next in the UK. If he prefers the fight in the UK, the ball is in their court. It’s up to them to choose.”

Wilder’s co-manager, Shelly Finkel told ESPN: “We have agreed to the terms that Eddie (Joshua’s promoter) has put out to us for a fight in the UK.

“Deontay sent an email to Joshua on Sunday night and I sent one today to Barry Hearn and Eddie telling them that we officially accept the offer to fight under the terms they gave us and to send us the contract.”

Wilder’s trainer Jay Deas told AP that even though fighting in the UK would mean his fighter earns much less than if he fights in the US he was “investing in himself” and doing it for his “legacy”

“They offered and we accepted. We offered $50m, which is what he said he wanted and then he turned it down”, explained Deas.

“Then they came back with a much, much, much smaller offer for Deontay, which would have been even less than Deontay would have made in the United States, and wanted him to still travel to the UK for the fight. And we said yes.

“The reason we did is because Deontay is investing in himself. He wants this for the fans and he wants this for his legacy and he knows that being the undisputed heavyweight champ of the world will give him the financial gain as he proceeds.

“Even though we would have liked a better deal, Deontay said yes.”

At this point, if Anthony Joshua doesn’t take the offer it will be perceived as him running away from a fight.