By Tim Royner: Tyson Fury’s dad John Fury says Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn needs to dig deep into his pockets and come up with $250 million for Tyson to take on IBF/WBA/WBO heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua if that’s the fight they want John says Fury is no longer going to going to “sell himself cheap.” Unless Hearn can come up with half a billion dollars to split down the middle between Joshua and Tyson, the fight WON’T happen, says John.
Can Hearn come up with the $250 million for Tyson Fury?
Fury (30-0-1, 21 KOs) got a guaranteed $30 million for his fight last Saturday night against WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder in Las Vegas. Tyson beat the previously undefeated Wilder (42-1-1, 41 KOs) by a 7h round knockout to take his WBC title from him at the MGM Grand Arena.
$250 million, the asking price by John Fury, for his son Tyson to take on Joshua in a unification match this year, it represents a tremendous boost in pay. Whether that kind of money exists in a fight between Fury and Joshua is unknown.
Hearn has been talking recently about the Joshua vs. Fury fight being the biggest potential in the history of the sport. If that’s the case, then perhaps $250 million apiece of both fighters isn’t asking too much.
Tyson Fury should get $250M for Joshua fight
“Tyson is #1 and Wilder is definitely #2. Unless Eddie can come up with half a billion, it’s not going to happen, because that’s what its worth,” said John Fury about to IFL TV a fight between Joshua and the ‘Gypsy King.’ “My son isn’t going to sell himself cheap no more.
“He’s got to get some serious money out of them, serious money because my son is worth all the money in the world. So if you’re talking about what you’re talking about, the fight [Fury vs. Joshua] will never happen. So dig deep in your deep pockets because it’s not going to happen.
“A half a billion for the two fighters, that’s what I’d be asking for that fight. Split down the middle. It’s the biggest fight in the world. Pull your money up. Let’s keep this fight in this country. I’d be fearing for Joshua’s life.
“If it does happen, let’s happen here instead of letting the fight go to foreign countries. Let’s give the British public the best fighting the best here. For my money, retire now,” said John Fury in discussing his opinion that Tyson should retire now,” said John.
John wants the following for Tyson in order for the Joshua fight to happen:
- $250 million
- The fight takes place in the UK, not in a foreign country
As far as Fury retiring, he still has 2 fights left on his contract with Top Rank that he needs to fulfill before he walks off into the sunset. One of those fights will be against Wilder, and the other presumably will be against Joshua IF Hearn can come up with the $250 million asking price set by John Fury.
Fury will be facing a highly motivated Wilder
Tyson still needs to beat Wilder in their rematch for the possibility of him facing Joshua can happen, and who knows what happens in the rematch. Most boxing fans agree that Wilder’s legs looked weak from the first round last Saturday. If his heavy costume excuse is valid, then we could see a different Wilder in the rematch, and a dangerous one.
It’s very likely that Wilder is going to be more motivated than ever to try and take Fury’s head off when they face each other in the third fight, and could spoil John’s big plans.
It’s nice that John has such a high opinion of his son Tyson, but that won’t change anything if Wilder lands one of his right hands on his chin. Fury likely hit the deck just like he did twice in their first fight, and he may not get up this time to beat the count.
You can expect Wilder to make changes to his training team for the third fight, and he’ll have sparred with a lot of huge heavyweights with similar size to Fury. Last Saturday, Wilder didn’t look like he was prepared to face the 273 lb Fury in terms of the size and the pressure that he brought. For their third fight, Wilder needs to spar with a big heavyweight like the 6’7 1/2″, 270+ lb Mariusz Wach. he’s about as big as Fury, and he’s a come forward heavyweight.
John Fury: Wilder should go after Joshua and FORGET Tyson
“I don’t blame him for that because it’s all about the money, but I don’t see what he can do with Tyson. He’s only getting better,” said John Fury in talking about Wilder triggering the rematch clause. “Forget about Tyson and Tyson Fury’s of the world. He’s too good for you.
‘He’s proved that. So what you want to do is go after AJ. There’s a lot of people out there that you can annihilate. Tyson Fury has too many brains, and he’s only getting better. Look far afield. There’s plenty of other heavyweights out there that you can make a few quid with. Get after Joshua, and you’ll probably get all the belts off of him.
“There’s plenty of other people out there. Concentrate on them but if you mess with my son there’s only one place you’re going, and that’s the hospital for a long time, so forget that one.
“Wilder will always bring something to the table. Forget about the belts, Deontay Wilder is an incredible fighter. He’s got the knockout power, and let me tell you, any lesser man than Tyson Fury is NOT beating Deontay Wilder,” said John.
There’s NO chance that Wilder will walk away from the third fight with Fury at this point. For one, the payday will be out of this world for Wilder in that fight, and for two, he could never live it down if he didn’t face him again. It might work out well for Fury if Wilder doesn’t take the trilogy match because then he could move forward and face Joshua next.