A summer showdown between Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury is "dead in the water", according to the latter's promoter.
Joshua's promoter Eddie Hearn said on Thursday he was "100 per cent confident" it would happen amid concerns over delays in finalising the Saudi Arabia super fight.
Bob Arum, though, believes it will not now be possible to complete negotiations in time and has called for the two men to arrange other fights for the summer.
practice makes perfect, imagine @anthonyjoshua face getting smashed up with theses clean rights. #world #vegas @trboxing Sugar Hill pic.twitter.com/9xzveFleBe — TYSON FURY (@Tyson_Fury) April 29, 2021
Arum told the Telegraph: "It will take months for the Saudis to do their due diligence on such a huge deal.
"It is not just a site fee, there are ancillary demands from the Saudis stretching into the broadcast deals and other things. It could take months for it all to play out. It could even take until 2022 the way it looks right now.
"The fight in July or August is dead in the water as far as we are concerned. The two fighters need to go and have other fights this summer while the negotiations for that fight in the Middle East conclude.
Public service announcement. More official news to follow, stay tuned. pic.twitter.com/b0TkFvQlGr — Anthony Joshua (@anthonyjoshua) April 11, 2021
"It is absurd what Hearn is saying that it is a done deal. If we had just done a site deal without all the other complications that have arisen, we would have a fight by now. Tyson Fury is fuming about it and is refusing to keep waiting."
The fight will be the richest in British boxing history, with the two men holding all four of the major world titles in the heavyweight division between them.
