As a rule I don't usually pay much attention to what John Fury says. But after the first Fury vs Wilder fight he claimed that Tyson was only at 60% of his previous level against Klitschko, and it's something I can fully believe. I think he saw Wilder getting outboxed by the likes of Gerald Washington and losing basically every minute of every round against an ancient Ortiz, and thought that even a shadow of his former self would also win every round that he isn't knocked down in. I'm starting to think the smoke and mirrors behind Wilder's career (and all those voluntaries) has led into smoke and mirrors with Fury's post-Wlad career and has left the heavyweight division a complete basket case. For what it's worth I think the version of Fury that beat Wlad would stand everyone on their head today and be a real problem for any past heavyweight. Remember how much of a step up that was and, if he didn't start to smash the drink and drugs, I think he would have come out of that a much better fighter with more confidence to throw harder punches. But I don't think we've even seen 70% of that level since. The subsequent Wilder fights just showed Wilder's limitations, Whyte looked beyond pathetic against ancient Povetkin, and a 50-year old version of Fury could still beat Chisora just using the jab. The Ngannou fight just underlined what should have been obvious all along. It puts all of Fury's decisions (ducks) into perspective. He had the belief (and courage tbf) that he was stylistically so suited to beat an overrated Wilder that it didn't matter what state he turned up in, and everything else is just a massive smokescreen and a bonus for him. I wouldn't even be surprised if there was some truth about the beers he was apparently drinking before Wilder I. He knows the game is up if he ever faces Usyk, and in reality there's a whole host of other fighters who could beat him at this point (the ones he's said there's no point in facing). The only question is how long he can keep up the charade - unfortunately with the WBC getting a good slice of the action it could be quite a while yet. TL;DR - Fury has been almost completely past it since the Wlad fight. Everything since is pretty much smoke and mirrors.
Imo he was nowhere near his peak fitness for the first Wilder fight, no way could he have been really ready after less than a year of training (given what his body had been through). I think the version of Fury that beat Wilder in their second fight was a legit world class fighter and as good as he was in the Klitschko fight. Wilder for all his flaws is very fast and is surprisingly good at setting up the right. To utterly destroy him the way Fury did takes a great deal of ability and ring IQ. Since then we’ve seen a slower, more flat footed Fury who imo is nowhere near as good. He’s got by fighting weak opposition (in an already weak era) who stylistically pose little threat. He got through the third Wilder fight on pretty much exclusively heart and determination. The Ngannou fight exposed him a lot of his flaws imo, when he’s in there with a guy who he can’t bully he ultimately struggles. I don’t think he’s anywhere near the level he was against Klitschko or in the second Wilder fight now. The Usyk fight will be a proper indicator of what he’s got left.
Good post. Fury in Wilder 2 was a fantastic fighter. Whilst Wilder has not really done much resume wise, he still is long and rangy with a huge right hand and is unorthodox, so to beat him down in the manner he did truly was a great win. I am not sure about the Wlad 1 stuff. It really was a non fight. It was a tickling contest. The second fight would have eradicated all doubts but sadly didn’t happen
Doesnt matter how you cut it. Wilder is an absolute nightmare proposition with that right hand. Fury dealt with chisora and whyte easily also. You dont do that unless your good tbh. People slate chisora and whyte but they almost always give whoever their fighting work. I think we,re either looking at fury growing past it overnight.....him understimating ngannou....just a bad performance or ngannou was a lot better than everyone thought he,d be. You dont beat chisora, whyte and wilder the way fury beat them with smoke and mirrors. Can see if he struggled with whyte and chisora but they we,re easy fights for him.
Wilder v Fury 3 was 2 warriors fighting until they dropped or the ref stepped in. The best Heavyweight Division fight in the era for me by a mile and Wilder came very close to winning. Give me great fights like this every month please.
Spot on. Wilder and Fury have each secured the others place in history with their trilogy. Gatti-Ward esque. It’s the action inside the ring that makes boxing folklore. I’ll not be telling my grandchildren about how quickly the O2 sold out, I’ll be telling them tales of two warriors in the ring who chose to lay it all on the line and went to war three times.
Wilder2 Fury probably beats Usyk but he's let it slip horribly since then and I don't see that guy coming back.
More people in the UK will remember Joshua vs Klitschko than any of the Fury vs Wilder fights. That’s simple facts.
Fury was different gravy in that 2nd fight, I reckon his mentality and training would’ve been spot on leading up to that moment. As pointed out, no way he could’ve been fully fit in that first fight because of the weight loss. I don’t think we’ll see the Fury from that 2nd right again, not many would have lasted that night against him and I say that as someone who isn’t a huge fan.
The legacy fight that people will remember for Joshua was not fighting an old man at Wembley aged 41, but his debut fight in the USA on 1 June 2019 in New York. This is down in boxing folklore and will be the first fight people talk about if Joshua's name is even mentioned. Elite British fighters who won World Heavyweight Titles - Lennox Lewis and Tyson Fury Non Elite British Fighters who won World Heavyweight Titles - Herbie Hide, David Haye and Anthony Joshua The eternal visual is on record should next generations need to see for themselves. Not a single elite trait within Team Humble.
Old man VLADD was plucked off his sofa, bundled into a helicopter full of money flown by Barry Hearns and dropped into Wembley stadium in his slippers to take prime Joshua life and death.
Chisora has lost 13 times now. He's been a good gatekeeper but with his huge size deficits it was always going to be a painfully easy fight for any version of Fury. Whyte was clearly shot to absolute pieces and again makes for an easy fight for Fury. The smoke and mirrors comes with choosing these two smaller, old, past-it plodders to flatter to deceive and keep the gravy train rolling. Doubt they were even in the top 30 heavyweights at this point in a very weak division.
I loved all the Wilder Fury bouts. Incredibly entertaining build-ups and fights and I was rooting for Fury all the way. Didn't really need the third one but I was still glued to the screen. But I still believe they were all of a much, much lower standard than advertised.
An instant classic, they gave us an incredible rivalry and I’ll always respect both men for the insane amounts of heart they showed throughout. I doubt Usyk vs Fury will be anywhere near as exciting, but it will be its own spectacle and it’s what boxing needs.
