Boxing
Anthony Joshua offered second chance to face Tyson Fury
The fury that Tyson Fury displayed on Monday at the expiration of his deadline for Anthony Joshua to sign a contract for a title fight appears to have melted.
He has now given his promoter, Frank Warren to continue pressing Joshua’s camp to confirm their blockbuster world heavyweight title fight.
The Gypsy King has set Joshua a number of deadlines for signing on the dotted line to meet him under the roof of Cardiff’s Principality Stadium on December 3.
According to a report by UK’s Daily Mail, ‘Tyson has become very frustrated by Joshua’s delays,’ says Warren.
‘But he’s authorised us to keep talking because he knows that unless this huge domestic fight isn’t made now it may never happen.
‘It took Joshua and his team including his promoter Eddie Hearn almost two weeks to respond to our contract which guarantees him 40 per cent of the take, which is more generous than Tyson is obliged to offer as the WBC champion.
They finally came back with alterations which were mostly nonsensical. But we immediately made adjustments and again we are waiting on a reply.
‘We hope we are wrong in suspecting that someone on their side wants to block this fight and does not want Joshua to risk a fourth defeat in five fights, which could be damaging at this stage of his career.’
Hearn has complained about Fury putting alternative opponents on stand by, notably Mahmoud Charr the German-Lebanese former WBA champion, but Warren says: ‘We have to have a fall back position in case Joshua pulls out.
Tyson will fill Cardiff whoever he fights. And December 3 gives him time to prepare to fight Olexsandr Usyk for the undisputed world title early next year.
‘For clarity, we are well into negotiations for that massive fight and there is no doubt it will happen.’
‘There is no reason why Joshua should not come to terms. TV rights were said to be the obstacle but the fact is that BT Sports, DAZN and ESPN in America are all on board with shared pay-per-view broadcasting.’
Fury says: ‘They keep complaining about lack of transparency but we have offered them co-promotion and participation in every bit of the deal. What could be more transparent than that?’
Warren insists: ‘We want the fight. They say they want the fight but it is time for them to prove it.’ He adds: ‘I’m still confident we can get Joshua over the line but this is a big event which will need time to promote.’
The dilemma for Joshua is that if he baulks at Fury there is no other fight of comparable magnitude or money to which he can turn. Usyk, for one, has played down speculation of a third fight with AJ, who he has defeated twice in succession in claiming and then defending the WBA, IBF, WBO and Ring magazine belts.
Oleksandr Usyk will put his WBC heavyweight title belt on the line against Dutch kickboxer Rico Verhoeven on May 23 at Egypt’s Pyramids of Giza, Ring Magazine announced on Friday.
The Ukrainian three-times undisputed champion holds the IBF, WBA and WBC titles after vacating the WBO belt.
The 39-year-old has not boxed since beating Britain’s Daniel Dubois at London’s Wembley Stadium last July.
“I respect his (Verhoeven’s) journey – he’s truly the ‘King of Kickboxing’. But this is boxing – a different game, with its own rules and its own kings,” said Usyk, who has a 24-0 record.
“I’m ready and looking forward to meeting him in the ring. It’s going to be a unique experience for both of us, and I know the fans are excited too. A big night is coming.”
The ‘Glory in Giza’ fight will be streamed live on DAZN.
“I spent 12 years as the undisputed heavyweight kickboxing champion and accomplished everything I set out to accomplish,” Verhoeven, 36, told The Ring.
“But staying at the top for that long didn’t take away from the hunger; it strengthened it. Usyk is the undisputed champion in boxing. That’s the kind of challenge that motivated me. Undisputed versus undisputed.”
Verhoeven has sparred in the past with former champion Tyson Fury and had one professional bout in 2014, which he won by a knockout.
-Reuters
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Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao will face off in a professional rematch at the Sphere in Las Vegas in September, with the bout streaming globally on Netflix, the fighters and promoters announced on Monday.
The fight marks Mayweather’s return from retirement and will be the first professional boxing match held at the Sphere.
Mayweather, who holds a perfect 50-0 record with 27 knockouts, defeated Pacquiao in their 2015 encounter dubbed the “Fight of the Century.”
That bout generated a record 4.6 million pay-per-view buys and a $72 million live gate at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.
“I already fought and beat Manny once. This time will be the same result,” Mayweather said in a statement.
Pacquiao, whose record stands at 62-8-3 with 39 knockouts, expressed confidence he would hand Mayweather his first professional loss.
“I want Floyd to live with the one loss on his professional record and always remember who gave it to him,” the Filipino fighter said.
The rematch will stream to Netflix’s more than 325 million subscribers worldwide, continuing the platform’s push into live boxing.
The streaming platform has recently broadcast several high-profile fights, including Jake Paul versus Mike Tyson, which the company said drew 108 million live global viewers
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Former multi-weight world boxing champion Floyd Mayweather will come out of retirement this year for his first official fight in nearly a decade, his new promotion CSI Sports/Fight Sports said on Friday, though his opponent has yet to be decided.
Before his official return, Mayweather is set for an exhibition bout with fellow boxing great Mike Tyson, with the date and venue still to be announced.
“I still have what it takes to set more records in the sport of boxing – from my upcoming Mike Tyson event to my next professional fight afterwards – no one will generate a bigger gate, have a larger global broadcast audience and generate more money with each event – than my events,” Mayweather, 48, said in a statement on his new promotion’s website.
It will mark the American’s fourth comeback from retirement, following previous exits in 2007, 2015 and 2017 — the last after beating Conor McGregor to extend his record to 50-0. He has, however, fought several exhibitions since.
Across a three-decade career, Mayweather defeated many of his era’s top fighters and headlined the three highest‑grossing bouts in history, against Manny Pacquiao, McGregor and Canelo Alvarez.
-Reuters
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