One man broke the eery silence regarding the postponement of the heavyweight title trilogy between Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder on Saturday night.
Frank Warren, Fury’s UK promoter, was the first to divulge in an official capacity that the fight would not go ahead on July 24th.
Before that point, only Top Rank has released any information into the public domain following WBN’s Dan Rafael outlining news of a Covid outbreak in Fury’s camp.
“We continue to monitor the health status of Tyson and his team, and the status of the event has not changed to date,” they said.
Shelly Finkel, Wilder’s co-manager, gave the first exclusive comments on the bout getting pushed back.
He said to WBN on Thursday: “If Tyson Fury and his team did what they should have done and said they had done, this fight would be on and not off.
“Deontay did what he was supposed to. He got his two Pfizer vaccines, and so did the members of his team.
“He’s ready to go, and this is because Fury did not do what he was supposed to.”
During a British fight broadcast on BT Sport, Warren became the first promotional figure to give fans solid information.
“It’s looking [to be] some time in October, which is a great shame it’s been postponed, but it is what it is,” Warren said.
“Unfortunately, they in the camp and himself got tested positive for Covid. There’s nothing we can do about it. It’s the times we live in, so the fight is postponed, pushed back.
“[It’s] Very frustrating, really frustrating for Tyson. By the time he gets into the ring, he will have been out for nearly 20 months. That’s a long, long time.”
HEAVYWEIGHT RESCHEDULING
WBN disclosed possible dates in October in a weekend update. However, the WBC seemed to think September could still be in play.
Not likely, though. Fury vs. Wilder III would clash with Canelo’s imminent return and potential undisputed championship bout with Caleb Plant.
As things stand, October 9th through to October 23rd are likely on the table.
