By Gabriel Princewill-
Tyson Fury needs at least one more fight before facing Deontey Wilder, the unbeaten gypsy man himself has admitted. Fury won a unanimous victory against experienced Francesco Pianetta on Saturday, but he showed nothing that would make him considered a real threat against the dangerous American, who was ringside in Belfast to see Fury’s victory.
Fury came in at 18 stonnes 6, and showed fast hands and supple feet, but looked nothing like a man ready for a world title fight. The unbeaten 6ft 9 inch gypsy man typically lacked power in the delivery of his punches, but power has never been his trademark. The 26 year old was not given a chance of victory by most boxing experts, before his surprise defeat of Wladimir Klitschko in 2015, yet he displayed a level of technical excellence in defeating a man who had gone unstopped for over a decade. Fury is a deceptively effective boxer, he is aesthetically uninspiring but very difficult to subdue.
Wilder is a different proposition, because the vocal and confident American is in the twilight of his career and has been active throughout the duration of Fury’s two year hiatus from the ring. Capable of throwing punches in flurries, Fury’s opponents are inhibited by the force those blows exert, despite the fact they lack decisive power. His size and height allied to a range of technical skills he possesses makes him a tall order for most heavyweights, but if Deontey Wilder is the world champion he wants the world to believe he is, the WBC heavyweight champion will use Tyson Fury’s big size and height to make himself look really spectacular when the pair meet later this year.
Any performance short of an emphatic victory for Wilder will make him look bad, yet by the time Fury has completed his preparations for their big clash, he will still be a huge monster who Wilder will have to hard and many times enough to put him down and keep him there. The will to stage this fight now is more opportunistic than it is legitimate. If high principles were a fundamental feature of the World Boxing Council organisation(WBC), one would expect them to insist on Fury having at least one or two more fights before meeting Wilder. An idyllic scenario like this will mean Wilder waits around in the meantime, or risks defeat by himself fighting his mandatory, Dominic Breazeale.
Such an ideal scenario will also mean both Wilder and Fury risking the lucrative fight falling through, but principles should always come above paper cheques. Try telling that to either of the two parties that stand to gain from this mega rich fight in the making, and you will immediately be relegated to the brackets of public enemy. In reality, a fight between Tyson Fury and Deontey Wilder will be massive, but Wilder will be robbed of any credit if he beats the version of Fury that turned up last Saturday night. It makes it a win -win situation for Fury who can always cite inactivity in the event of a most expected defeat before running to cash his massive jackpot £10m pay cheque.
The most intriguing thing about any critical appraisal on Tyson Fury is the fact he can be a freak of nature. It simply is not inconceivable for him whilst looking so ungainly, to outbox Wilder on points, using his height, reach and weight advantage to make life impossible for Wilder for a whole 12 rounds in front of a global audience. Tyson Fury will have to be in the best shape of his life even for any such remote scenario to materialise , but his team, the WBC Council, and the television companies, should all be trying to achieve at least one more fight before throwing him in the lion’s den against Wilder.
Fury’s health and safety should be of paramount importance compared with the huge cheque the fight will fetch him. The Eye Of Media.Com will be exploring the possibility of another fight with Fury’s promoters, but unfortunately with the big bucks involved, we will not be hopeful of such an outcome. Both sides are determined to get this fight going as soon as possible, and it is likely to be entertaining whenever it happens.