Connect with us

Boxing

Tyson Fury fight agenda complicated by WBC and Anthony Joshua

Published

on

Tyson Fury’s next opponent is yet to be confirmed following Dillian Whyte’s latest setback and with Anthony Joshua facing Oleksandr Usyk in a rematch next year

According to Manchester Evening News, It’s been a complicated year for Tyson Fury fans, who have seen plans collapse, change at the last and become uncertain.

The big hope for 2021 was a unification bout against Anthony Joshua,  which was agreed to take place in Saudi Arabia last summer.

However, a judge in America ruled that Fury must honour his rematch clause with Deontay Wilder – and the heavyweight scene has dramatically changed since.

Fury, unsurprisingly, was the victor in the rematch in a fight that will go down as one of the best in recent boxing history. Regardless, it wasn’t the fight that people wanted to see.

To make matters worse, Joshua‘s defeat to Oleksandr Usyk, which occurred in the weeks before Fury’s victory in Las Vegas, means any unification bout between the two Brits is a way off.

Advertisement

For any chance for that to occur, Joshua will have to defeat Usyk in the rematch to win back his belts. The catch there is that the 2012 Olympian showed nothing in the first bout to suggest he can turn things around.

Again, it means those losing out are the fans. While a unification bout between Usyk and Fury would be a fierce contest, it’s not the fight that people have been clamouring for.

While that situation will take time to be resolved, the more pressing situation is Fury’s next opponent – with a wealth of uncertainty continuing to float around following the WBC’s decision not to name Dillian

Fury will return to the ring in early 2022, extremely likely to be a mammoth UK homecoming for the heavyweight champion, but fans deserve a conclusive answer on what the plan is so they can build their excitement for such an occasion.

Given it’s Fury’s long-awaited return for a UK fight, the excitement levels would reach an unprecedented level and, in that sense, it’s largely irrelevant who it is facing off against Fury.

Advertisement

Whether it be Whyte, Joe Joyce or someone entirely different, the key fact is given fans a date and time for the bout, following a number of years during the pandemic where everything has been subject to uncertainty.

Kunle Solaja is the author of landmark books on sports and journalism as well as being a multiple award-winning journalist and editor of long standing. He is easily Nigeria’s foremost soccer diarist and Africa's most capped FIFA World Cup journalist, having attended all FIFA World Cup finals from Italia ’90 to Qatar 2022. He was honoured at the Qatar 2022 World Cup by FIFA and AIPS.

Continue Reading
Advertisement

Boxing

Mike Tyson and Jake Paul get suspended for last the distance in Netflix super fight

Published

on

Winner, Jake Paul and Mike Tyson have been prevented from getting to the boxing ring .

Both have received an official ban from boxing after their Netflix Superfight

The bout went the distance but both boxers have received an official suspension from boxing.

The two fought in a huge, record-breaking event in front of 70,000 fans at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, with Paul emerging with a unanimous decision victory on the scorecards after the eight-round bout went the distance.

Both he and Tyson will not be able to return to the ring right away. They have received the minimum suspension period, according to regulations followed by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR).

Advertisement

Both Paul and Tyson are required to serve a suspension for 24 days. The rules stipulate that fighters must rest for three days per round fought and the pair completed a full eight.

There is, however the possibility of appealing the medical suspension – with the fighter in question having the option to request a hearing where they can must prove their fitness.

Regulations from the TDLR state: “Medical disqualification of a contestant is for their own safety and may be made at the recommendation of the examiningphysician or TDLR. A contestant who disagrees with a medical disqualification, medical suspension or rest period set at the discretion of a ringside physician or a disqualification or suspension set by the department may request a hearing to show proof of fitness.”

The co-main event undisputed title fight between Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano, which averaged 74 million viewers, also went the distance and means both women are suspended for 45 days.

Serrano, who lost on points to Taylor in the rematch, was left with a large cut from an accidental headbutt.

Advertisement

Paul’s triumph once again received backlash, with some coming up with theories claiming Tyson pulled his punches and that it was “rigged” for the 27-year-old to win.

Although he admitted he decided against knocking Tyson out as he didn’t want to hurt him, Paul and his team emphatically denied the claims.

“You don’t realize my power, and my speed, and my agility, and my footwork to get out of the way of those punches,” Paul commented on the IMPAULSIVE podcast.

“All of a sudden he’s throwing at air. He can’t land those punches on me.”

In his only official comment after the fight, Tyson said he “lost but still won” after overcoming a serious health scare where he “almost died” back in June following an ulcer flare-up.

Advertisement

He said there were “no regrets to get in ring one last time”.

Continue Reading

Boxing

Netflix says 60 million households worldwide tuned in for Paul-Tyson match

Published

on

 Netflix (NFLX.O), opens new tab said on Saturday that 60 million households worldwide had tuned in for the highly anticipated boxing match between Jake Paul and Mike Tyson, and the event peaked at 65 million streams, according to a statement.

The bout between the 27-year-old social media influencer-turned-prize fighter Paul and the 58-year-old former heavyweight champion Tyson, which Paul won, was streamed live on Netflix.

Nearly 50 million households tuned in for the co-main event between Ireland’s lightweight champion Katie Taylor and Puerto Rico’s featherweight champion Amanda Serrano, according to Netflix.

“The bout is likely to be the most watched professional women’s sporting event in US history,” Netflix said in its statement.

There were some hiccups during the live-stream of the match, with over 90,000 users reporting problems on Netflix at its peak, according to outage tracking website Downdetector.

Advertisement

However, the streaming platform was back up on Saturday after the outage that lasted roughly 6 hours in the United States.

-Reuters

Continue Reading

Boxing

Former heavyweight champion Tyson has no regrets after fighting ‘one last time’

Published

on

Nov 15, 2024; Arlington, Texas, UNITED STATES; Mike Tyson (black gloves) fights Jake Paul (silver gloves) at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images/File Photo

Boxing legend Mike Tyson said he had no regrets about his defeat to social media influencer-turned-prizefighter Jake Paul, adding that he had nearly died in June because of health issues.

Tyson was beaten by unanimous decision on Friday at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, with fans largely disappointed as the 58-year-old former heavyweight champion showed his age and was never able to generate any offence against his younger opponent.

Initially set for July, the fight was pushed back after Tyson suffered an ulcer flare-up.

“This is one of those situations when you lost but still won. I’m grateful for last night. No regrets to get in ring one last time,” Tyson wrote in a post on X.

“I almost died in June. Had eight blood transfusions. Lost half my blood and 25 lb (11 kg) in hospital and had to fight to get healthy to fight so I won.

Advertisement

“To have my children see me stand toe-to-toe and finish eight rounds with a talented fighter half my age in front of a packed Dallas Cowboy stadium is an experience that no man has the right to ask for. Thank you.”

The bout was streamed live on Netflix, though hiccups during the livestreaming prompted more than 90,000 users to report problems at the peak, outage tracking website Downdetector showed.

The streaming platform was back up on Saturday, however, after the outage lasted about six hours in the United States.

-Reuters

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Most Viewed