Bob Arum wants Dillian Whyte to fight Usyk with winner taking on Tyson Fury or Anthony Joshua for all the belts

BOB ARUM has urged Dillian Whyte to fight Oleksandr Usyk with the winner taking on either Tyson Fury or Anthony Joshua for the unified heavyweight belts.

The Body Snatcher is mandatory challenger for the Gypsy King’s WBC strap but his title shot is under threat following his fellow Brit’s deal for two bouts against AJ next year.

Whyte, 32, was told he would finally get his opportunity by February 2021 at the latest.

Yet that has once again been put in doubt after it was confirmed last week that talks were progressing smoothly between AJ and Fury’s camps for a unification heavyweight showdown.

Whyte – will have been the WBC mandatory for 1,000 days in July – is now considering legal action over the dispute but Arum suggested a different route.

When asked if the mandatories would obstruct Fury vs Joshua, the Top Rank promoter told talkSPORT: “No. The mandatory situations are being worked out by all the organisations.

“It’s unfair to accelerate mandatories or keep them where they were because of the fact these fighters couldn’t fight for most of this year.

I know if Dillian Whyte presses for a mandatory with Fury, I’m sure Mauricio [Sulaiman] would make Fury the ‘franchise’ champion

Bob Arum

“Dillian Whyte can fight for an ‘interim’ title or whatever makes him happy, and after Joshua and Fury have their two fights–

“It’s probably better if Dillian Whyte fights Usyk to get a real contender.

“I think boxing is gonna be totally different after this coronavirus is over.

“People are working together, people wanna make the best fights, they’re not gonna be tied down with mandatories.

“And I know if Dillian Whyte presses for a mandatory with Fury, I’m sure Mauricio [Sulaiman] would make Fury the ‘franchise’ champion, just the way he did with Lomachenko and Canelo.

“Then we don’t have to worry about nonsense mandatories.

“I’m not saying Dillian Whyte’s not a good fighter, he is a good fighter, but again, these are unique circumstances.”

Fury’s co-promoter Arum had previously urged the WBC to make the Gypsy King their “franchise” champion.

The boxing governing body introduced a new rule in 2018 that upgrades certain big-name world titleholders to this status.

This designation allows the fighter to have various privileges, including a lack of mandatory challengers.

Canelo Alvarez was made the “franchise” middleweight champion and his mandatory Jermall Charlo became the regular champion.

And Vasyl Lomachenko was named “franchise” lightweight champion with his mandatory Devin Haney becoming the regular champion.

That means the WBC can still charge sanctioning fees to two fighters in the same division, with both being able to claim to be world champions and the star not having to face his mandatory.