Tyson Fury

By Michael Collins: Peter Fury, the uncle and trainer for unbeaten Tyson Fury (19-0, 14 KO’s), says that Tyson is sparring with MMA fighters to get in shape for his upcoming fight which they hope will be against former WBA World heavyweight champion Ruslan Chagaev in November.

Peter Fury said to Britishboxers.co.uk “He’s got a couple of MMA fighters…excellent sparring for him.”

I’ve never really heard of a professional fighter using MMA fighters to spar with to get ready for a well seasoned veteran like Chagaev. I’m not sure that an MMA fighter would be someone that would be good for a sparring partner given that they’re often guys from wrestling backgrounds with little skills or experience at boxing.

You can pretty much take even the oldest heavyweight from professional ranks and put in a top MMA fighter and put gloves him and he’s likely to lose and lost badly. It takes too many years to get good at boxing, and sticking gloves on an MMA fighter and sparring with them probably is a waste of time.

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By James Slater: According to British Boxers.com, who were afforded an exclusive interview, unbeaten British heavyweight star Tyson Fury will next face experienced former WBA heavyweight champ Ruslan Chagaev. The fight is set for November (exact date and venue to be announced).

33-year-old Chagaev, 29-2-1(18) was once looked at as one of the very best heavyweights in the world. Known as “The White Tyson,” the southpaw had an excellent amateur career and his pro career went without a hitch until a 2009 corner retirement loss to world ruler Wladimir Klitschko (arguably Wladimir’s best-ever, most punch-perfect, performance) . Before that one-sided fight, that saw “Dr. Steel Hammer” sweep every minute of every round, Chagaev had, for just over two years, held the WBA crown. Wins over John Ruiz (a final eliminator) Nikolay Valuev, Matt Skelton and Carl David Drummond still look pretty good on the Uzbekistan’s record.

Since his best days, Chagaev has had health problems (hepatitis) and he has also endured long layoffs. 4-1(1) since the loss to Klitschko, Chagaev’s other loss came on points to Alexander Povetkin in a failed attempt at regaining the then vacant WBA strap. So-so wins over Kerston Manswell (WU8) and, last time out, Billy Zumbrun (TKO 3) have seen Chagaev keep a little more active as of late.

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