Kubrat Pulev made it clear that he intends to challenge heavyweight titleholder Anthony Joshua in his next fight but hinted, ever so slightly, that he might be open to stepping aside.
The handlers of Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua reportedly are exploring the possibility of going directly into an all-British title-unification fight this winter in Saudi Arabia. However, Pulev, who has a signed contract to fight Joshua, and Deontay Wilder, with a deal to fight Fury a third time, would have to give the go-ahead.
“We have signed contracts for that fight and everything is ready,” Pulev told BoxingScene.com. “We worked on this contract for maybe two months and it was not so easy. But now we have this contract and I am ready. I don’t want to wait. I want the title fight with Anthony Joshua and I will beat him really good and get the second knockout against him.
“I am the mandatory challenger and these are the rules. It doesn’t matter who wants to box him or who he wants to box. Anthony Joshua has to box me.”
That said, money sometimes motivates people to change their minds.
Pulev was asked specifically whether stepping aside – for the right price – is a possibility.
“I am ready for this fight against Joshua, so I don’t know,” he said. “Nobody knows. I want this fight. When somebody comes to me and tells me something and offers me something, maybe. I don’t know, but I want this fight, I am ready for this fight and I believe this fight will happen this year.
“I’ve waited a long time for this fight with Anthony Joshua. I am the longtime mandatory for this fight, but I am open for talking, no problem. But I want this fight. That’s it.”
Of course, an offer must be made.
“The fact is we have a signed and sealed contract with Joshua, so there are no arguments there,” Pulev co-promoter Ivaylo Gotzev told BoxingScene.com. “There are two separate signed contracts between four fighters, a signed contract for Fury and Wilder to have a third fight and Wilder has executed his rights. That’s a known fact. And there is also the contract we have for Anthony Joshua to fight Kubrat Pulev. We’ve waited for this fight for a long time. We’re not going away. We must fight Joshua next, per our signed agreement.
“There hasn’t been a single word about a step-aside deal. We haven’t been approached about one. We are all interested in rescheduling Joshua-Pulev as soon as possible.”
Joshua and Pulev were set to meet on June 20 at the new Tottenham Hotspur stadium in London but the fight was postponed indefinitely because of the coronavirus threat. No date had been selected for Fury-Wilder III when the pandemic took hold.