It wasn’t the fight we all wanted to see. I mean, we’ve seen this contest twice before. But due to the WBO insisting Anthony Joshua had to face Oleksandr Usyk or risk having his heavyweight title taken away from him, the Fury-Joshua fight was put on hold.
So instead, Fury agreed to Fight Deontay Wilder for a third time, with both his WBC and The Ring heavyweight titles on the line.
The first time these two met was back in 2018, after a period of time where Fury hadn’t been fighting for quite some time and Deontay Wilder was at the top of his game. The pair met in the ring at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, on Wilder’s home soil. He was the current reigning WBC champion, and self-proclaimed best heavyweight boxer in the world at the time. But after going the distance, and knocking Fury down twice, the fight ended in a draw.
Both fighters after the match believed they had done enough to win the fight, and went on to call out Anthony Joshua in a bid to get another title fight. But before that could even be arranged, the two fighters decided on a rematch to settle once and for all, who was the better fighter of the two heavyweight hitters.
The second fight came in February 2020, just before the COVID-19 pandemic put a halt to sport around the world. It once again took place on Wilder’s home soil, this time at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Paradise, Nevada. Most pundits and betting odds available from bookmakers had Wilder as favourite after the way the first fight went. However, this time Fury was in much better shape after an intense training camp, which saw him knock Wilder down round after round, cutting him open with some hard-hitting blows. Eventually in the seventh round, the fight was stopped, when Wilder’s team threw in the towel.
There was once again more talk about Fury fighting Joshua following the bout, after some respectful comments from both boxers about their fight. But as mentioned, COVID hit and put a delay to any proceedings. By the time that terms were able to be discussed and agreed between Fury and Joshua, the WBO declared that Joshua had to fight mandatory challenger Oleksandr Usyk, or lose his WBO title.
So with that fight off the cards, Fury offered Wilder a third fight, to give him the chance to claim his titles back on October 9th, 2021. The meetup will once again take place in Paradise, Nevada, at the T-Mobile Arena. Possibly giving Wilder the home advantage once again, but Fury has actually been spending much of his time in the US anyway, treating it as a home away from home. And considering the result of the 2nd fight, it doesn’t seem like Fury really cares much about home advantage anyway.
To prepare for their next bout, the Gypsy King has been training hard with Sugarhill Steward at the Kronk Gym in Detroit, and won’t be letting his titles go without a fight. But Wilder too has stepped up his own training to get into the best shape of his life ahead of Tyson Fury vs. Deontay Wilder III, even going as far as partnering up with one of his former opponents, Malik Scott.
With both fighters pouring blood, sweat and tears into their training camps, it could be one of the best and most unpredictable ights of the year. Especially considering the difference between the first two fights, going from an even match-up ending in a draw, to a one-sided battle that saw Fury leaving Wilder in a bloody mess.
It literally could go either way, and it wouldn’t be a surprise. Fans are getting so excited, with ex-professionals even giving their opinion on the upcoming fight. George Foreman tweeted “the next they meet should be the best ever; I think they both have surprises left in the bag. You can pick’m. Wilder/Fury a great fight coming”.
And once the two finish the fight, the next question will be who to fight next? And it’s highly likely that the winner will once again call out Anthony Joshua for a unification fight for all the belts. If Wilder wins, he will certainly deserve the opportunity.
But it wouldn’t be guaranteed. And there is a very high chance that no matter what the result, because the Fury-Joshua battle has been the one fans have been calling for, for years, that will be the matchup we next see being booked. Fans want to see the two biggest talents in British and World boxing face each other, to see who really is the king of the ring.
The fight would obviously be more exciting if Fury beats Wilder again, as a unification bout to bring all the titles together will be the pinnacle of the boxing calendar. But even without all the belts on the line, it’s still a match people will flock in their millions to see, whether that be in whichever arena or stadium it takes place in, or on PPV at home or even in sports bars and pubs.
