WBC heavyweight champ Tyson Fury has broken his silence in responding to the swirling rumours – perhaps talks – of him featuring in a four-man heavyweight tournament to take place in Saudi Arabia in December of this year. You’ve read/heard the story: Fury would fight WBA/IBF/WBO heavyweight ruler Oleksandr Usyk, while former champions Deontay Wilder and Anthony Joshua would fight. The plan then would be for the two winners to collide in a monster fight some time next year.
Eddie Hearn has said talks have begun as far as the tournament in December is concerned, as has Wilder’s trainer Malik Scott. And it goes without saying how we fans would absolutely love to see this four-man tournament. It seems too good to be true to some, but if anyone has the power and the money to host such a mega-million dollar/pound event, it is the mega-rich Saudi money men.
But Fury, taking to social media for the first time in a while, has poured cold water on the story:
“I can confirm that these rumours are total BS!” Fury wrote.
So, is Fury telling us the whole story, or is “The Gypsy King” merely letting us know that he will not be taking part in any such tournament? Maybe Wilder and Joshua will still fight in the Middle East in December, and maybe Usyk will too.
Usyk’s guy Alex Krassyuk took a verbal swing at Fury when he read what Fury wrote regarding the “BS” tournament:
“He’s s******g his pants again,” Krassyuk wrote on social media.
Krassyuk is obviously referring to the manner in which the Usyk-Fury fight, set, we thought, for April 29, fell apart – with Team-Usyk laying the blame for this at Fury’s feet. So, is Krassyuk telling us the whole story, and is Fury afraid to take part in the talked about tournament? Who can ever be sure with Fury? We just don’t know what he’s going to do, and very likely, neither does he.
But to repeat, if this tournament did happen it would be nothing but great for the sport. The four best heavyweights on the planet fighting, the two winners to get it on to decide, once and for all, who is the best in the world. But if Wilder, AJ and Usyk want to do it and Fury doesn’t, what then?
All we can do at this stage is wait and see if anything comes of this talked of tournament or not. It certainly would cost a gargantuan amount of money to put an event like this together.