Arum optimistic about Fury vs. Usyk

Renowned boxing promoter Bob Arum, head of Top Rank and co-promoter of WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury, has indicated that Fury’s next title bout could be the highly anticipated clash with Oleksandr Usyk for the undisputed heavyweight championship. 

While Fury is currently set to face Francis Ngannou in a non-title bout, Arum believes that the Fury vs. Usyk fight won’t be difficult to arrange and could happen as early as December or early next year.

Speaking about the potential fight, Arum expressed optimism, saying, “It won’t be hard to make. I know the Usyk people; they’re nice people. His manager, his promoter, they’re terrific people. Usyk himself is a terrific guy. I think he wants that fight. I think that fight’s going to happen, and hopefully, it will happen sooner rather than later.”

Despite previous negotiations falling through, Arum seems confident that this time, the Fury vs. Usyk bout will come to fruition. He also indicated that Fury might not have many more fights left after this anticipated showdown, stating, “I would like to see him fight Usyk. I think once he fights Usyk, and assuming he beats Usyk, then I think he’ll do a victory lap, maybe two more fights, and let the younger guys take over.”

This potential matchup between Fury and Usyk promises to be a blockbuster event for boxing fans and could determine the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world for the first time in decades. In the past, we have seen similar fixtures fail to come through. 

The closest we came to having an undisputed match was in 2021 when Anthony Joshua still had the WBO, WBA, and IBF titles. Unfortunately, both Fury and Joshua had mandatory fights to fulfill, and Joshua’s loss to Usyk derailed hopes for an undisputed match. 

Now, all we can hope for is that the right negotiations take place to bring Fury vs. Usyk to our screens. 

Leon Osamor