03 November 2023 , 02:00
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If there is one sport in which contracts really are not worth the paper they are written on, it is boxing.
And make no mistake, it might be formally agreed but there is a good chance Tyson Fury versus Oleksandr Usyk, a defining fight, might never happen. The scheduled date of December 23, this year, has already been scrapped and we await news of possible dates in 2024.
If Tyson is going to fully enjoy a good family Christmas - as he should - then do not hold out any significant hope of a Fury-Usyk fight before next spring, even though a mid-February date is being suggested. In fact, do not hold out any significant hope of a Fury-Usyk fight, full stop, even though Frank Warren categorically insists it WILL go ahead.
Unless, of course, Fury is interested in leaving a sporting legacy, is interested in the intangible reward of true sporting greatness. Because right now, he does not have it.
Fury’s achievement in defeating Deontay Wilder three times should never be underestimated and his recovery in the first fight of that trilogy was one of the most remarkable performances in boxing history. When he was in peak condition, Fury proved to be a far more accomplished boxer than many observers had previously thought.
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But the bottom line is that Fury has had six world title fights, three of them against the same opponent and two against British boxers, Derek Chisora and Dillian Whyte, who were never going to seriously trouble him. The third meeting with Wilder, the last high-intensity occasion of Fury’s professional career, was well over two years ago.
Tyson Fury had a testing clash against Francis Ngannou (Getty Images)Do you think Tyson Fury versus Oleksandr Usyk will happen? Share your thoughts in the comments below
After Francis Ngannou turned out to be a better boxer than many thought he would be - and after Fury had clearly not bothered with extensive and exhaustive preparations for the novelty crossover bout - it was inevitable that a December clash with Usyk would be far too soon for Fury.
But you have to wonder if any time will be too soon for Fury. He has just made an absolute fortune from a sparring session with a 37-year-old novice.
Reports suggest he might end up banking as much as £50million from a fight in which, let’s be honest, not one punch of world-class power was landed. Why wouldn’t Fury fancy doing that again?
And while he would have to prepare a bit more seriously for an Ngannou rematch, it would still not be on the scale of what he would have to do ahead of a fight with Usyk. Usyk has not exactly been busy but at least he has had two serious fights inside the past 15 months.
Despite his non-show against Ngannou - a non-show still good enough for a win - Fury against Usyk is the fight heavyweight boxing so desperately needs. And if he cares about his legacy, about his place in the pantheon of sporting greats, it is the fight Fury so desperately needs.
He has claimed, in the past, that he does not care about those things, that he is only interested in cold, hard cash. But if nothing else, Fury has claimed a lot of things and only been saying them for effect. Let’s hope this is the case again but do not be surprised if Fury-Usyk never happens. And that would be a sporting shame.