Tyson Fury insisted Monday night that he’s gone from what would be a lucrative showdown with Anthony Joshua to a much less high-profile fight against Mahmoud Charr.
The undefeated WBC heavyweight champion claimed in an Instagram post on Monday that the deadline Fury set for his handlers and those representing Joshua to reach an agreement for a December 3 fight at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff , Wales, passed at 5pm BST. That left him little choice, according to Fury anyway, other than to proceed with his second choice, the Charr of Germany.
Representatives from Frank Warren’s Queensberry Promotions, which co-promotes Fury along with Bob Arum’s Top Rank Inc., and Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing, had constructive discussions Monday about the complicated television and broadcast partnership that would be required to broadcast and broadcast a Fury-Joshua fight in the United States and the United Kingdom.
Fury (32-0-1, 23 KOs) is aligned with BT Sport in the UK and ESPN in the US. Joshua (24-3, 22 KOs) has a multi-fight contract with DAZN, although Sky Sports Box Office televised their second fight. he defeats Oleksandr Usyk by unanimous decision in the main event of pay-per-view on August 20 in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
Although the two sides were hopeful Monday night that they could come to an agreement, Fury said he is now focused on taking on Charr.
“Well guys, it’s official: D-Day has come and gone,” Fury said in a video posted to his Instagram account on Monday. “It’s already past 5 on Monday [in the UK]. No contract has been signed. [by Joshua]. It’s officially over for Joshua. Now he’s out in the cold with the wolf pack. Forget it. Idiot! Coward! I always knew I didn’t have the minerals to fight ‘The Gypsy King’. Good luck with your career and your life. End of [story]. Calm down.”
Fury questioned Joshua’s heart, later writing in another Instagram post: “If I give a fool a chance I hope he signs when told! #nuffdijeron”.
After suffering back-to-back losses to Usyk, Joshua reportedly agreed to split the purse 60-40 which would favor Fury in what would still be considered the biggest fight in British boxing history. No doubt Fury will make a lot less money to fight Charr, but the Manchester native is determined to box before the end of this calendar year.
Fury, 34, wants to take on Usyk (20-0, 13 KOs), but his full heavyweight title unification fight will have to wait until at least sometime in the spring because Usyk has said he needs time for his Body. to heal before entering the ring again. Ukrainian Usyk, 35, holds the IBF, OBI, WBA and WBO heavyweight titles that Fury won from another Ukrainian, Wladimir Klitschko, in November 2015 and later vacated.
The 37-year-old Charr, formerly known as Manuel Charr, once owned the WBA heavyweight world title.
He has sued promoter Don King and the WBA because Charr alleged he never received the WBA “super” heavyweight title shot he was promised. Charr, who was born in Lebanon, has boxed just twice since November 2017, largely due to the circumstances that ultimately led to the aforementioned legal entanglement.
Charr (33-4, 19 KOs) has won five fights in a row but has been defeated by knockout or TKO by former heavyweight champions Vitali Klitschko and Alexander Povetkin and former cruiserweight champion Mairis Briedis in a catchweight fight. heavy. He would be a big underdog if he fights Fury, who has stopped former WBC champion Deontay Wilder twice and Dillian Whyte in his last three fights.
“I look forward to fighting a man who wants to fight and has fire and desire,” Fury wrote in an Instagram post referring to Charr. “I fought some of the best fighters and now I’m stepping up again! Get in there Charr.
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.
