Tyson Fury Says Deontay Wilder Is 'Afraid' to Fight Him

Tyson Fury has reignited his war of words with Deontay Wilder by claiming the American is scared of facing him in the ring.

He told Michelle Phelps of Behind the Gloves (h/t Sky Sports):

"

He was offered a substantial amount of money to step in when David Haye pulled out a few years ago—and he didn't take the offer.

We made that offer 10 times and now he's signed with Al Haymon I don't think the fight's going to happen.

And it's because he [Wilder] is afraid. Why else would someone say that?

"

Fury is due to take on Wladimir Klitschko on November 28 and Wilder has agreed to fight him—but only if he beats the Ukrainian world No. 1, per Sky Sports' report.

The Englishman is thus far unbeaten with 24 wins out of 24, 18 of which came by knockout. 

Sports Illustrated's Chris Mannix believes Fury, like Klitschko, is one of the best in their weight class and noted the manner in which Fury dismantled his most recent opponent, Christian Hammer:

Wilder has a similarly impressive record having emerged victorious in all 35 of his bouts and winning by knockout in all but one.

Brynn Anderson/Associated Press

However, in the past Mannix has accused the Bronze Bomber of avoiding challenging opponents:

Fury goaded the WBC heavyweight world champion further by attacking his status among boxing fans:

"

Whether someone like Klitschko wins, loses, draws or gets knocked out in five seconds he is still a big name.

Wilder is not a big draw in the US. He maybe sells 5,000 to 10,000 tickets when he's fighting in his own town for the heavyweight champion.

If he came over here we would sell-out a stadium, maybe 40,000-50,000, so I would say I'd be in the driving seat.

"

After beating Johann Duhaupas in September, Wilder spoke of his hope of taking on Klitschko at some point in 2016, so it's possible he's only interested in taking on the winner of his fight with Fury rather than avoiding another opponent who would pose a risk to his perfect record.

It seems almost inevitable the American will have to face one of the pair eventually, or Fury's assertion he's afraid will become lore among boxing fans, which would be disastrous for the 30-year-old's legacy.

After Fury faces Klitschko, expect Wilder to be vocal in challenging the winner to a bout, regardless of who it is.