WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury has made it clear that he will not be forced by the World Boxing Council, or anyone else, to make a mandatory defense against Dillian Whyte.
Pursuant to a WBC order, Whyte is owed a mandatory shot at the title by February 2021.
As recent interviews would confirm, Fury is going to face Deontay Wilder in a trilogy fight by the end of the year - possible in December, depending on the COVID-19 restrictions.
Fury and his team are already working on the details of a two-fight series with WBO, IBF, WBA, IBO champion Anthony Joshua in 2021.
The two-fight series would likely occupy Fury's entire schedule for next year - pushing back Whyte's hope of a WBC title shot to 2022.
Whyte is slated to face former champion Alexander Povetkin, possible in August.
If the WBC attempts to pressure Fury to give Whyte his mandated shot, the unbeaten champion warns that his status as 'lineal champion' is more important than any world title.
There is also a realistic scenario of the WBC making Fury a 'franchise champion' and then elevating Whyte, who holds the interim-title, to full champion.
"I'm about fighting the biggest fights out there and Wilder-Joshua-Joshua are the biggest fights out there. Dillian Whyte is looking for a pay-day against me and Pulev is looking for a pay-day... all these challengers are not sellable, especially in America, so I'm looking to do colossal fights, the last few fights I have left, I want them to be the biggest possible fights," Fury said to Queenberry's Lockdown Lowdown show.
"It won't be a belt or an organisation dictating to anybody because no-one has ever dictated to the champion. These low profile fighters don't mean anything to me, I'm after the biggest fights available. I'm a proud WBC champion but at the end of the day I'm the lineal heavyweight champion of the world which trumps everything. Belts are just pieces of leather with pieces of metal on them and they don't mean anything to me.
"Dillian Whyte is a one-hit wonder and he's been knocked out by AJ already. The answer to Dillian Whyte is, wait in the queue and your time will come when it comes; I'm not really interested in you. If he thinks he's going to call me a few names on social media and I'm going to turn down a $100 million pay day then he's got a long wait."
