World featherweight champion Lee Selby has confirmed he won't hand Josh Warrington another chance to challenge him.
Wales' IBF king (23-1-KO8) had been expected to defend his title at Warrington's beloved Leeds United in the summer, but negotiations broke down after it emerged that the would-be challenger had organised his wedding.
Warrington (23-0-KO4) responded to Selby's initial criticism by branding 'The Welsh Mayweather' a 'cry baby' - but the champion has warned that Warrington becoming mandatory challenger is the only route to the bout remaining.
Selby, who hopes to face the winner of Leo Santa Cruz's WBA 'Super' defence against Carl Frampton on July 30, was quoted as saying on walesonline.co.uk: "I said if I was offered a title fight when I wasn't a champion, I'd have divorced my wife to box for it. And that's the truth. I'd have put it on hold, definitely
"(The line is) drawn, he's missed his chance. The only chance he's got now is becoming the mandatory. I've seen reports their plan now is to become mandatory, where they only take 25% of the purse. And I couldn't see him winning a final eliminator.
"The plan was to fight Warrington in Leeds, at the end of July. That would have been a high-profile fight in the UK.
"Carl Frampton's fighting Leo Santa Cruz (for the WBA featherweight title on July 30), then we were hoping Frampton would win, and we'd fight each other in a unification match. The fight's simple to make.
"Warrington has been calling me out after every fight he has. Now the fight's presented to him, he's pulled out due to the fact he's getting married at the end of the following month."
Assessing Frampton's chances of glory in New York, Selby added: "Santa Cruz is a bit underestimated. He's big at the weight, tall, rangy. He's relentless, and he's got a great chin.
"On the downside, his father, his long-term trainer, has got cancer and has undergone surgery, and that might have an effect on the fight.
"With Frampton, you've got good boxing ability. He's quite a bit shorter, but the weight difference won't matter because they're both really super-bantamweights. If he can keep the boxing up for 12 rounds, without holding his feet, he can win."