Trainer Malik Scott says a prospective fight between former WBC world heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder and former unified world heavyweight champion Andy Ruiz is now ‘dead.’
Last November, at the WBC convention held in Mexico, the WBC championship committee ordered a final eliminator between the two former world champions to decide who would be the organisation’s next mandatory challenger to face their world champion, Tyson Fury.
Wilder has not fought since his first-round knockout victory over Robert Helenius and has been heavily linked with a bout with Anthony Joshua. However, those talks have stalled between the parties of Wilder, Joshua and the Saudi Arabian promotional entity, Skill Challenge Entertainment.
Reporting around Wilder had suggested that the former WBC champion had wanted a ring return before facing Joshua, which is set to be held in the early months of 2024 in Saudi Arabia with Ruiz a leading name to be in the opposing corner. Negotiations had come to an impasse recently, with Ruiz claiming that Wilder had been aiming to lowball him with several offers for an October encounter.
Speaking to Little Giant Boxing podcast, Scott confirmed that negotiations have to a close and feels Ruiz was using the negotiations to keep his name going and relevant.
“That’s dead.
“Andy don’t wanna fight Deontay, and his way of saying it was asking for 20, 30 million dollars for a fight that you don’t deserve 20, 30 million dollars for. Hiding behind the business is what he did, and I truly believe he never really wanted to fight Deontay, but it was a good sales pitch and something to keep his name going.”
However, it is now expected that Wilder will proceed directly into a contest with Anthony Joshua with no interim fight. Last month, Wilder spoke to reporters that he was in continued negotiations with Joshua and was working on a two-fight deal between himself and long-time divisional rival Joshua.
