Tyson Fury’s promoter wants him focused to avoid suffering Joshua’s fate

By Boxing News - 06/03/2019 - Comments

Image: Tyson Fury's promoter wants him focused to avoid suffering Joshua's fate

By Trevor McIntyre: Promoter Frank Warren wants lineal heavyweight champion Tyson Fury (27-0-1, 19 KOs) to stay focused on his opponent Tom Schwarz (24-0, 16 KOs) to avoid suffering an upset loss like the one that former IBF/WBA/WBO champion Anthony Joshua experienced last Saturday night against underdog Andy Ruiz Jr. at Madison Square Garden in New York.

Schwarz is an underdog just like Ruiz Jr., and he’ll be looking to pull off a huge upset over the 6’9″ Fury to change his life. Ruiz (33-1, 22 KOs) wasn’t supposed to win, but he surprised Joshua by knocking him down four times in the fight before the bout was stopped in round seven.

“Tyson Fury will have to be very much on his guard. People keep talking about easy or knock-over opponents, but Tyson has got a job to do on June 15,” Warren said at frankwarren.com. “Tom Schwarz has got the chance to change his life in Las Vegas. He is a big guy who can punch and is also young and unbeaten. He will take inspiration from Ruiz.”

Schwarz has a chance to change his life with a win over Fury, but not in the same way Ruiz did. Fury isn’t a world champion, even though he likes to call himself the “lineal heavyweight champion.” That’s not a world champion. A win for Schwarz won’t result in him getting the kind of payday that Ruiz will be getting in a rematch with Joshua. Ruiz is going to make huge money in the rematch with Joshua.

Fury and the 25-year-old Schwarz will be facing each other on ESPN+ on June 15 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The U.S is foreign territory for Fury. It’ll be the second time that Fury has fought in the United States. Last December, Fury fought to a controversial 12 round draw against WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. The referee Jack Reiss gave Fury a huge break by not stopping the fight after he was knocked unconscious by Wilder in the 12th round. In most cases, a referee stops that fight and immediately calls in the medical staff, but Reiss gave Fury a count while he was laying on the canvas with both eyes closed not stirring.

If Fury gets knocked out like that by Schwarz, it’s unlikely that he’ll be able to depend on the referee to count. Fury must do a better job staying on his feet against Schwarz, because Wilder had him down twice. Schwarz is a good fighter, and he’ll be looking to knockout Fury the way Wilder did. This time, the fight will likely be stopped if Fury gets dropped like he was in the 12th round in Wilder contest.

“Suffering defeat in such a manner to Ruiz did come as a surprise, but the vulnerability of Joshua has been there for all to see over a number of fights now,” said Warren. “He has been clipped by a few good opponents and nothing seems to have been done to minimize the risk.”

Schwarz not comparable to Andy Ruiz talent-wise

There’s a world of difference between the talent level of Ruiz and the 6’5″ Schwarz. Ruiz is a major talent, and should arguably still undefeated. He beat the brakes off of Joshua, as well as Joseph Parker. He’s never faced anyone that has beaten him in the real sense. In contrast, Schwarz is a limited fighter with an inflated ranking, and no wins of substance during his career. He was given a #2 ranking by the World Boxing Organization at heavyweight after beating the likes of Senad Gashi, Kristijan Krstacic and Ivica Bacurin. Schwarz’s opposition has been woeful. He’s not in the same league as Ruiz and never has been. The WBO has Schwarz ranked high for some reason, but it’s clearly based on his past wins, because he’s been fighting awful opposition his entire career. It’s troubling that Fury actually agreed to fight Schwarz. Is there concern from Top Rank Boxing about whether Fury can still take a hard shot?

If Fury was fighting Ruiz Jr. on June 15, then he would have a lot to worry about. Not matter how many defensive gyrations Fury went through, he would be hard-pressed trying to get out of the way of the combinations that Ruiz would be throwing his way. Moreover, we don’t know if Fury is the same fighter after the way he was knocked out by Wilder in the 12th round. Fury got up from the knockout, but he may not be the same fighter. Ruiz would be a trouble for Fury. Schwarz should be an easy fight for Fury, as long as his punch resistance is still there. That’s the big question. Can Fury still take a hard shot without hitting the deck with both eyes closed for five seconds.