Eddie Hearn is undeterred by Tyson Fury’s loss to Oleksandr Usyk in Riyadh last Saturday night, saying the Gypsy King showed he is STILL at the “The height of his powers,” and he wants to talk to Turki Alalshikh about making a fight between Tyson and Anthony Joshua next.
The Last Payday
Hearn wants to set up two fights between AJ and Fury, one at Wembley and another in Riyadh. To make a Fury vs. Trying to sell Joshua fight to the public, with both losses, seems desperate, as if the two of them are trying to get one last payday out of the fans.
British fans will still buy the fight in large numbers, but it won’t be popular in the American market as fans will see it as a cash grab between two washed-up fighters who never beat established guys during their careers. Both were produced fighters who made a career out of beating an old 40-year-old Wladimir Klitschko. It was the highlight for Fury and Joshua.
They are already rich, and it seems pathetic to make this fight now. It’s too late in the game without them coming back to get some solid wins against top heavyweights like Martin Bakole and Daniel Dubois.
Hearn says Fury (34-2-1, 24 KOs) didn’t look “weak” and he considered the fight a draw. However, Fury lost by a 12-round unanimous decision, and fans didn’t think he had won, nor did they see him at the “peak of his powers.” He looked below average to him, but he had never been great, even in the best of times.
The “Only” Fight
“Tonight’s Usyk-Fury, but the reality is there’s only one fight for Tyson Fury, and that’s Anthony Joshua,” said Eddie Hearn. DAZN Boxingin response to Fury’s loss to Oleksandr Usyk last Saturday night.
“This is the biggest fight in the history of British boxing. Everyone will want to see it. By the way, it wasn’t a Tyson Fury that looked finished. It was not a flat performance. It wasn’t a poor performance. He didn’t seem gunshy. He didn’t seem like his punch resistance was in question as we talked about it,” said Hearn, trying to put a positive spin on Fury’s lackluster effort in his loss to Oleksandr last night.
“So, I think Tyson Fury is possibly still at the peak of his powers. He’s just not good enough to beat Oleksandr Usyk tonight, but for me AJ vs. Fury is the one at Wembley (London Stadium), and then it’s out here again (for the Fury-Joshua rematch) for Riyad- season. I’m going to push His Excellency (Turki Alalshikh) to make the fight, but that’s another one maybe for another day,” Hearn said.
Fury looked washed out against Usyk last night and would lose to many other heavyweights in the division. If Hearn doesn’t make it to the Joshua-Fury fight now, it will be too late, as neither can beat the top five heavyweights.
Usyk looked far from great last night but was still far too good for Fury. As for Joshua, he can no longer land a punch and is only safe as long as Hearn protects him with his matchups.