By Barry Holbrook: Top Rank boss Bob Arum says he’ll begin negotiating the Oleksandr Usyk vs. Tyson Fury undisputed clash next Monday, providing Derek Chisora doesn’t upset his plans by pulling off an upset against ‘The Gypsy King’ on Saturday.
As long as Fury doesn’t get in the way of the negotiations as he did when he foolishly bungled the talks for Anthony Joshua with dumb deadlines, Arum should be able to put together the match against Usyk (20-0, 13 KOs).
The journeyman Chisora (33-12, 23 KOs), who many boxing fans feel doesn’t rate a title shot with his lowly 1-3 record in his last four fights, isn’t likely to cause Fury (32-0-1, 23 KOs) any issues in this clash between old friends.
Fury-Chisora 3 undercard
- Daniel Dubois vs. Kevin Lerena
- Yvan Mendy vs. Denys Berinchyk
- Karol Itauma vs. Vladimir Belujsky
- Royston Barney Smith vs. Cruz Perez
“I don’t see any reason why the [Oleksandr] Uysk fight with Tyson Fury can’t be made speedily without much trouble,” said Bob Arum.
“I know the Usyk people very well. I know Oleksandr Usyk. I know he wants the fight. I talked with Tyson a little while ago, and he wants the fight.
“That fight will happen next unless Mr. Chisora lands his punch. Don’t discount Chisora. He has a tremendous punch,” said Arum.
“They’re crazy. I’m giving Chisora a hell of a chance. I remember him fighting Usyk, and that was life or death for Usyk. Look how Usyk handled Joshua,” said Arum to Pro Boxing Fans.
“We all want to make that fight. Tyson, myself, Frank Warren, George Warren, and the Usyk people. We didn’t want to start negotiations prior to this fight [Fury-Chisora 3] on December 3rd, but on Monday, we’ll hit the ground running, and hopefully, we’ll get that fight done in the next two weeks.
“I think it does well. There’s nothing like the UK fight fans, and they know they’re going to see an interesting fight and an interesting card. That’s what people want.
“They want the entertainment. That price is a lot less than it is in the United States for pay-per-view,” said Arum about the criticism of 26.95 for the pay-per-view price in the UK for the Fury vs. Chisora III fight.
“So, no, I think this [Fury vs. Chisora] is a very, very competitive fight. Of course not,” said Arum when asked if he believed Fury would return to the ring when he announced his retirement earlier this year.
“I’ve been around this sport for 60 years, and there are certain fighters, once a big fight is over, they can’t wait to announce their retirement. You give them a few weeks, and they change their mind. They love, and they love competing,” said Arum.