Wilder-Fury rematch deal reportedly close, purse bid postponed

A purse bid for the WBC heavyweight title rematch between Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury has been postponed again, and ESPN reports that’s because the two sides are close to making a deal without getting to the purse bid.

Wilder’s co-manager Shelly Finkel says that he hopes the deal will be done “late this week or early next week,” and says, “as far as I know there are no issues.”

Wilder (40-0-1, 39 KO) and Fury (27-0-1, 19 KO) fought to a draw on Dec. 1 in Los Angeles, with Fury coming off the canvas two times in a fight many observers felt he deserved to win on points.

The rematch was in demand immediately, as it was an entertaining heavyweight title fight, and both fighters sounded committed to running it back right away. Of course, that all could have changed, and Fury reportedly was approached by Anthony Joshua’s team for a fight at Wembley Stadum on April 13, but Wilder-Fury remains the focus for both sides.

If/when the deal gets done, Finkel tells ESPN that the target date is either April 27 or May 18. In past years, that would’ve been a huge gamble, as the Cinco de Mayo weekend around May 5 has traditionally been a boxing pay-per-view slot, but this year we’ve got Canelo Alvarez and Daniel Jacobs fighting on DAZN, which means that the Wilder-Fury rematch pay-per-view won’t be asking boxing fans to dip into their pockets twice in a short time frame. New York and Las Vegas are reportedly in the mix for the site.