Tyson Fury has been told he will have the opportunity to bounce back from his conclusive points defeat by Oleksandr Usyk in Saturday’s rematch by taking on Anthony Joshua at Wembley.
Fury declined to say if he would fight on after he was beaten by an unanimous points decision in Riyadh, with all three judges awarding the decision to WBA, WBC and WBO champion Usyk by the score of 116-112.
The 36-year-old said “who knows?” when pushed on whether he will continue, adding he will make a decision next year having taken some time off following another gruelling showdown with the remarkable Usyk.
While his dream of becoming the heavyweight division’s undisputed king is dead after successive losses to the Ukrainian master, the chance to claim domestic bragging rights over British rival Joshua is being dangled in front of him.
Eddie Hearn, Joshua’s promoter, insists a Wembley showdown next year between the two would be a box office smash, even if both men are coming off losses. Joshua was knocked out by IBF champion Daniel Dubois in October.
“The reality is there’s only one fight for Tyson Fury and that’s Anthony Joshua. It’s the biggest fight in the history of British boxing and everyone will want to see it,” Hearn told DAZN.
“That wasn’t a Tyson Fury who looked finished. It wasn’t a flat performances, it wasn’t a poor performance. He didn’t look gun shy or like his punch resistance was in question.
“Tyson Fury is still potentially at the peak of his powers, just not good enough to beat Oleksandr Usyk.
“For me AJ against Fury is the one. One at Wembley and then back out here for Riyadh season. I will be pushing his excellency (Saudi Arabia’s boxing powerbroker Turki Alalshikh) to make the fight.”
Fury felt he had won and bitterly disputed the decision, while his promoter Frank Warren said he was “dumbfounded” by the scoring in the rematch at Kingdom Arena.
Despite conceding four stones and six inches in height, Usyk set the pace for the bulk of the contest, showing greater skill and landing more and bigger shots with greater accuracy.
Fury was outstanding as the rivals produced another classic, albeit more of a chess match than May’s dramatic first encounter, and the rounds were desperately close.
But the Gypsy King’s output visibly decreased in the second half of the fight, with Usyk’s left hand the most potent weapon of the night.
“Thanks to everyone who came and supported me. We move on. We go now into a new year and whatever that brings, we’ll see,” said Fury, who cut out the showboating for the rematch.
“The fight’s done now, it’s in the past. I’ve not got a decision. It is what it is and we move on. I’ll go home to my family. I’ve not seen my kids for 12 weeks.
“You can’t change decisions, I’ve done the best could. If I could have done any more then I would have done. And that’s it.
“I felt good in there. I felt good. I had a good pace, I was on the front foot for 12 rounds. I enjoyed it. I took it more seriously. He never hurt me once. I’ve got a couple of flesh wounds and they’ll be gone in two or three days.”
