Saudi Arabian boxing chief Turki Alalshikh has bizarrely accused Dua Lipa of having “something with the Arab” in a confusing rant.
The comments come after Dua Lipa declined the Sheikh’s offer to play at the upcoming heavyweight fight between Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua.
Watch Turki Alalshikh’s comment about Dua Lipa via the video player above
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Turki is financing the Fury-Joshua bout which is set for Cardiff, Wales on December 12 (AEST).
The first press conference for the fight took place in London on Wednesday, with Turki handed the microphone before launching into a strange criticism of Dua Lipa.
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It came as he addressed the decision to put the fight on at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, rather than Wembley Stadium in London.
He said: “I will be honest today, I know that London wouldn’t give me the stadium until 2am.
“And I know that Dua Lipa will not perform in the stadium, because she doesn’t like boxing, and maybe she doesn’t like me.”
When somebody then shouted out from the crowd, Turki responded: “No, I think she has something with the Arab. And, you know, it is my blood. I cannot change it.”
Dua Lipa has not yet responded to the comment.
The location of Fury-Joshua was heavily rumoured to be New York, but Joshua’s team, who had signed a contract for the bout to take place in the UK, insisted it be on British shores.
And while Turki and Netflix acknowledged there was more money in the fight if it was staged in the US, they eventually compromised.
However, it does mean the fight is not likely to take place until the early hours of the morning UK time on December 12 — around 12pm-1pm AEST.
Fury and Joshua have been rumoured to fight for the best part of a decade.
Both two-time world heavyweight champions, Fury and Joshua will face-off for the WBA crown in what is widely considered the biggest bout in British boxing history.
Fury, whose professional record stands at 36-2-1, said: “I’m gonna come out and blast him out of there. It will be a gunfight. The best man’s gonna win.
“I ain’t gonna run away, I’m not gonna box, I’m gonna throw down. From what I’m seeing, I’m going to catch him, and when I do, it’s going to be curtains. And that’s it.”
While 30-4 Joshua added: “I’m willing to take and take punch after punch and keep moving forward until my hand’s raised.
“I’m looking forward to it. I know it’s going to be difficult, not in the sense that I’m not capable, but I know every fight has its challenges.
“I’m just looking forward to keep on pushing forward until I get that victory, because it’s just what’s in me.”
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Originally published as Shock Dua Lipa ‘Arab’ remark rocks boxing as Saudi billionaire launches into bizarre rant