By Jim Dower: Tyson Fury thinks WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder has an even better shot at getting injured in his next fight against Luis Ortiz than he does in his WWE match this month against Braun Strowman on October 31 in Saudi Arabia. It’s interesting that Fury is saying that Wilder has the better chance of being injured than he does. Fury is getting £11.9 million for his WWE match on the Crown Jewel card on October 31.
Fury (29-0-1, 20 KOs) is taking a big risk in facing Strowman, as he had a bad cut over his right eye that is still healing from his last fight against Otto Wallin last September. The cut needed 47 stitches to close. Wilder and Fury are supposed to be facing each other in a rematch in February. That’s cutting it close in terms of Fury’s eye. But with Fury taking part in a wrestling match on October 31, there’s a good chance the cut will be reopened. That in turn will likely result in his February fight with Wilder being postponed.
Wilder (41-0-1, 40 KOs) is facing #2 WBC Ortiz (31-1, 26 KOs) in a rematch on November 23 on Fox Sports pay-per-view at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada. It’s a risky fight for the 6’7″ Wilder, considering he was almost knocked out by the talented Cuban heavyweight last year on March 3 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Ortiz hurt Wilder in the 7th, and came close to scoring a knockout in the round. Wilder bounced back in the 9th to drop Ortiz. In the 10th, Wilder stopped Ortiz after dropping him twice with hard shots.
Fury says Wilder is the one taking the risky fight
“He just said it was a bad idea, and that I could get injured and jeopardize the Wilder fight, which I agree with,” said Fury to IFL TV about his promoter thinking it’s risky for him to take part in a WWE match on October 31. “But life is about taking risks, but if you’re going to have these lifetime experiences, sometimes you’ve got to take these risks. Nothing is planned for February, is it? How can we plan anything for February when Wilder’s got a fight against Luis Ortiz?
“Everyone is overlooking Ortiz like he’s a bum. Although the guy is 50-years-old, the guy is still dangerous for 4 rounds. So don’t go to sleep on Luis Ortiz because he’s a monster. He’s definitely a bad old man, that’s for sure. He’s dangerous for four or five round, and he’s as good and dangerous as anyone in the world. So don’t go to sleep on him, and overlook him or you’ll get knocked out like AJ did. So don’t concentrate on me. Concentrate on what Deontay Wilder is going to do,” said Fury.
Wilder isn’t receiving criticism for taking a risky rematch with Ortiz because it’s a title defense, and it’s in the sport of boxing. In Fury’s case, his decision to take part in a WWE match in wrestling, it’s looked at as a selfish move by some fans. They think Fury is trying to make money and putting his boxing career at risk. Wilder says he’s not overlooking Ortiz. He knows he’s a tough opponent, but it’s a risk he’s willing to take. Unlike Fury, this isn’t a wrestling match and a money grab.
Fury thinks Wilder will be the one pulling out of February fight
“Leave me and my wrestling alone. If I get injured, I get injured,” said Fury. “He’s likely to get more injured than me. The thing is, it’s not me going to get pulled out, because I don’t want to fight in February. It’ll be because he had a tough fight. ‘Oh, I can’t go in February, because I’ve been injured or beat or whatever. It is possible because it’s heavyweight boxing, isn’t it?” said Fury.
With Fury’s cut, there’s a very good chance that’ll be reopened in his October 31 match against Strowman. Unless he takes it easy on Fury, the cut will likely be opened. He can’t take it easy on Fury because this is a pay-per-view match on the WWE Crown Jewel card. If it looks like Strowman is taking it easy on Fury, there will be a lot of unhappy fans.
