WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman has announced Tyson Fury will take on another opponent before a rematch with WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder.

The governing body had ordered a rematch following the draw in their first fight in December but Fury will now “take on another fight” before turning his attention to Wilder.

Sulaiman said on Twitter: “@BronzeBomber (Wilder) vs @Tyson_Fury is officially not happening next.

“While WBC champion Wilder confirmed his willingness to fight the rematch, Fury will take on another fight with expectations to do the rematch at a later date.”

Last week Fury announced a lucrative deal with ESPN that makes it the “exclusive” broadcaster of his fights in the United States and that made negotiations difficult given Wilder has a deal with network Showtime.

However, after the announcement of that deal Fury’s promoter Frank Warren insisted the Wilder-Fury rematch remains likely.

Fury’s fellow Briton Anthony Joshua holds the other recognised belts in the division – WBA, IBF and WBO – and he will fight American Jarrell Miller at Madison Square Garden in June. That fight will be shown in the US on DAZN, giving all three fighters different loyalties and interests.