Boxing

TYSON FURY’s historic undisputed heavyweight title fight with Oleksandr Usyk is on course to take place in “early March”.Negotiations over the clash of undefeated champions resumed after Fury’s Tottenham trilogy fight with Derek Chisora last December.
Tyson Fury resumed negotiations over a showdown with Oleksandr Usyk after his Tottenham trouncing of Derek ChisoraCredit: PA
The pair faced off after Fury’s third defence of the WBC heavyweight titleCredit: REUTERS
Promoter Frank Warren has revealed the bout is in the works for ‘early March’Credit: PA
Elbow surgery was set to rule Fury, 34, out until after the spring, but promoter Frank Warren has revealed it’s all systems go for a March meeting.
When asked to provide an update on the fight, the Queensberry Promotions chief told iFL TV: “The date will probably be in March.
“That’s basically where we’re at, early March.”
The oil-rich Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is a serious contender to land the undisputed showdown – the first since Lennox Lewis’ rematch with Evander Holyfield 24 years ago.
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But a site deal has yet to be finalised – leaving the door open to a potential Wembley war for all the heavyweight marbles.
Warren continued: “No location has been finalised, once we get the fight done then the rest will just fall into place.
“We’re still negotiating as to the site but until we’ve got the fight done then we’ve got nothing.
“Let’s get the fight done and then get to where it’s going to take place.
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“You never know, it could take place at Wembley.”
Both parties will move quickly to finalise a venue for the bout, which will go to the bidder willing to stump up the most cash.
Warren said: “The decision will be made with the site very quickly because we want to get it on in March.
“And if we want it to go on in March it has to go on sale soon, no matter where it takes place.
“We are not going to mess around and put one against the other, it is going to be about where the boys can make the most money.”
Fury and Usyk, 35, sized one another up after the Gypsy King’s lopsided beatdown of old rival Chisora.
Tyson Fury reckons Oleksandr Usyk will be an easier night at the office than against Derek ChisoraCredit: REUTERS
And the WBC champ reckons the slick southpaw will be an easier night at the office than against Chisora.
He told iFL TV: “I don’t think it is a tough fight: “I don’t think it’s nowhere near as tough as old Del Boy [Derek Chisora].
“He will not stand up to those punches that Derek did against me.
“When I watch the fight between him and Derek, whether people want to admit it or not, it was a 50/50 fight.
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“It might have been 55/45, but it wasn’t a landslide.
“It wasn’t like he didn’t win a round, like he didn’t against me.” More

ANTHONY JOSHUA has been advised to “play the game” if he wants to regain his title as a heavyweight champion. Following back-to-back defeats against Oleksandr Usyk, which saw Joshua lose the WBA, WBO and IBF titles, he has now been told how he can return to his glory days.
Anthony Joshua has been told how he can get back to winning waysCredit: PA
Evander Holyfield has told Joshua to “play the game” to reclaim his crownCredit: Getty
Boxing legend Evander Holyfield, who is the only four-time heavyweight champ, has encouraged the Brit to be more aggressive in his approach and to use his physical advantages.
Speaking to iFL TV, he said: “Anthony Joshua is a good fighter, but if you don’t throw enough punches, you don’t use your size to your advantage.
“He is a big guy, he’s got to use the jab, everybody knew (Adonis) Stevenson had a great jab and that’s pretty much what he is throwing.
“Every time he catches you asleep with the jab, then you get hit with a right hand and you are out of there.
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“Anthony Joshua can pretty much do the same thing, he is big and large and a good fighter.
“He actually can box, but he has to be a bit more aggressive you have to use your size to your advantage.
“Sometimes he gets with a guy, he won’t overbear him, he won’t push you down but they are trying to push him down.
“You have to play the game out right to not let somebody out-hustle you.”
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Joshua is looking to return to the ring early this year.
Last month, promoter Eddie Hearn earmarked Spring as the time of his return, though an opponent is yet to be confirmed.
A number of candidates are said to be in the running for the bout including Dillian Whyte and Deontay Wilder, while Otto Wallin has been declared the “perfect” opponent for AJ.
Another defeat could be catastrophic for his career, and despite Joshua changing his support staff TWICE in one year trainer Barry McGuigan insists the ultimate blame lies with him.
He told Boxing King Media: “The fact is he’s been around a few different trainers and that automatically makes you think he is blaming the trainer for not performing.
“The bottom line is it is with you.
“You are responsible for your performance. I think Joshua is going through a crisis, he needs to stop questioning himself. He’s got to knuckle down and get on with it.
“Whoever he goes with he has to concentrate on fighting aggressively whether he fights Usyk again or fights Tyson Fury.”
Joshua has gone to America to find his next trainer after splitting with Robert Garcia, with the former coach claiming Joshua needs a “stricter camp” to get back on top. More

MOSES ITAUMA – remember the name.The wonderboy cancelled his own 18th birthday on Thursday to get a headstart on topping the Baddest Man on the Planet and becoming history’s youngest heavyweight world champion.
Moses Itauma believes he can fight for the world title by 2025Credit: Jamie McPhilimey
All-time great Mike Tyson was the undisputed world heavyweight champ from 1987 to 1990Credit: Getty
The prodigious heavyweight – a three-time European and now World youth champion – chose instead to train alongside light-heavyweight brother Karol, 22.
So SunSport and Francis Warren of Champion Sports Management, who guide the pair, visited with balloons and bunting.
The giant southpaw groaned as he entered trainer Dan Woledge’s Ropes and Glory Chatham gym to the fanfare, where he wants to be far more focused on breaking Mike Tyson’s record of 20 years, four months and 22 days.
But he warmed up when that milestone was mentioned, he told us: “Me and my brother have talked about me breaking that record and just looking at the dates and the maths, it is very doable.
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“Karol told me ‘if anyone can do it then you can’ and I believe I can do it.
“The current world champions now are in their thirties and the ones that are coming up, supposedly to replace them, I reckon I can do all of them.”
Tyson Fury, 34, holds the WBC crown and is expected to share an undisputed decider with WBA, IBF and WBO king Oleksandr Usyk, who turns 36 on January 17 in the spring.
Mandatory challengers, former champions and established contenders like Joe Joyce, Daniel Dubois, Filip Hrgovic, Anthony Joshua, Deontay Wilder and Andy Ruiz will then fight for the titles.
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So Itauma, raised in Kent by his Slovakian mum and Nigerian dad, knows exactly the time frame he has to shatter one of Tyson’s most incredible feats.
Already showing plenty of boxing maturity, he said: “It’s not easy to get a world title shot, I can only get in there and fight, so I will not get angry at the things I cannot control.
“20th May, 2025 is the day to do it by and it sounds miles away but it will come around quickly.
“Physically I am still a boy compared to the lot ahead of me so I am working on growing into being a man. I think I will be alright.”
A cruel childhood and the genius of trainer Cus D’Amato turned Mike Tyson from bullied Brooklyn pigeon fancier to undisputed icon and multi-millionaire before he could ever understand it.
Moses is carved out of a different sized stone but has also sacrificed his childhood to become a boxing behemoth.
“I never really celebrated a birthday since I was about 15,” he said with a baritone voice Barry White would have been proud of.
“I was a very big kid, by 14 I was probably about 6ft 4in tall and 17st. I have always felt like an adult since then.
“I haven’t grown too much physically but now I feel like I am maturing, mentality, into being a man.”
Despite his freakish frame, Moses hated bullying and was often the last line of defence at school.
“I was the justice system,” he said. “There were times when I had to bully the bullies because I hated seeing that stuff. I never liked seeing anyone being picked on.”
Big brother Karol led his sibling into their childhood St Mary’s ABC gym when he was 14 and Moses was nine.
If anyone is going to beat Mike Tyson’s record it is my brother. I know how he ticks and at times it is crazy to be a part of it.kAROL iTAUMA
At 9-0 in the pro ranks and a veteran of heavyweight undercards featuring the likes of Dubois and Joyce, he might be concerned about his not-so-little bro.
“I haven’t had to protect him since he was about 13,” he laughed.
“There’s no trepidation from me, even as his big brother.
“If anyone is going to beat Mike Tyson’s record it is going to be my brother.
“I know how he ticks inside and at times it is crazy to be a part of it and to witness it unfold.
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“I really think he is going to do it, I genuinely think he is the only person standing in the way of himself.
“I am just excited to see it all unfold, people will take notice of the debut and then they will start to recognise this talent that we have been watching grow into the man he has become.” More

MANNY PACQUIAO will be back in action next year following a successful return to the ring.The former eight-weight world champion laced up his gloves earlier this month for an exhibition with South Korean martial artist DK Yoo, which he won via unanimous decision.
Manny Pacquiao retired from boxing after a decision defeat to Yordenis Ugas last AugsutCredit: AP
Pacman returned to the ring earlier this month for an exhibition boutCredit: AP
The pride of the Philippines will return to the ring next year under the RIZIN bannerCredit: RIZIN
But the pride of the Philippines has announced will get back in the squared circle next year under the RIZIN banner.
Pacquiao was a surprise guest at RIZIN 40 in Tokyo on New Year’s Eve and revealed he’d “agreed to fight in RIZIN next year.”
An opponent hasn’t been set for Pacquiao’s maiden fight in the promotion, although the boxing great is “excited to fight a Japanese fighter.”
RIZIN chief Nobuyuki Sakakibara – the former head of the now defunct Pride Fighting Championships – was quick to quiz Pacquiao on his willingness to face “any Japanese fighter.”
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But Pacman doubled down on his willingness to fight anyone Sakakibara presents him.
Pacquiao teased a fight in RIZIN in September when he attended a press conference to promote old rival Floyd Mayweather’s clash with Mikuru Asakura.
That led to talk of a rematch between the pair, although Pacquiao doesn’t foresee it ever coming to fruition.
He told FightHype: “I’m willing to have a real fight with him, not an exhibition.
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“We need to answer those questions in the minds of the fans.
“I was affected the first year because people were asking me, ‘When is the rematch?’
“Up until now, they’re asking when is the rematch with Mayweather.”
Pacquiao brought the curtain down on his Hall-of-Fame career last September following a unanimous decision to defeat Yordenis Ugas.
Manny Pacquiao is keen on a rematch with Floyd MayweatherCredit: AFP
He said: “My boxing career? My boxing career is already over.
“It’s done because I’ve been in boxing for a long time and my family says that it is enough.
“I just continued [to box] because I’m passionate about this sport.
“I will just support other boxers for us to have a champion again.” More

IT’S far too fanciful to believe that when Martin Luther King said “we must accept finite disappointment — but never lose infinite hope” he had boxing fans in mind.Lovers of the noble art are constantly irritated beyond measure, because they so rarely get the opportunity to see the best fighting the best.
Colin Hart reckons boxing fans deserve to see Oleksandr Usyk vs Tyson Fury in 2023Credit: Getty
A year ago, this column chose six fights British punters would like to have watched in 2022.
They were Tyson Fury v Anthony Joshua, Terry Crawford v Errol Spence, Anthony Yarde v Joshua Buatsi, Josh Taylor v Gervonta Davis, Mairis Briedis v Lawrence Okolie, as well as Gennady Golovkin v Chris Eubank Jr.
All potential box-office hits. But I did warn that — because of the cynicism and greed of the world governing bodies and the intransigence of rival TV companies — few, if any, would happen.
Surprise, surprise none of them did.
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So it’s pointless for me to suggest future match-ups because, despite the new year about to dawn, the situation in 2023 isn’t going to change.
But at least promoters Bob Arum and Frank Warren assured us we can now look forward to a world heavyweight unification battle between Fury and Oleksandr Usyk in the spring.
Warren said: “It looks like March and we hope to get the deal done in the next few weeks.
“They both want it to happen and there won’t be broadcast problems.
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“We will still need to decide on a venue.”
Wembley Stadium has been mentioned — and it would certainly draw another 94,000 crowd — but if the Saudis badly want to stage it, then it will be another desert dust-up.
There is no doubt the heavyweights will dominate again next year — and there are so  many mesmerising and mouthwatering possibilities open to the big boys.
Imagine Deontay Wilder against Joshua, a Joe Joyce-Danny Dubois return, Joshua-Joyce, Wilder-Dubois, Dubois-Joshua, or Joyce-Wilder.
And if Fury should beat Usyk he could defend against British rivals, Joshua, Joyce and Dubois. Well, we can dream, can’t we?
At least boxing gets off to a cracking start next month when Russian-born Canadian Artur Beterbiev defends his WBC, IBF and WBO light-heavyweight titles against Anthony Yarde at Wembley Arena on January 28.
Beterbiev, who turns 38 a week before they clash, is a scary, ferocious puncher with a remarkable record — having won all of his 18 pro fights by knockout.
It’s not surprising he is a massive 1-7 favourite to keep his belts. And if Yarde does find a way to win, it’s doubtful  there will be a bigger upset in the next 12 months.
At least the Ilford man now has James Cook, the former British and European super- middleweight champion, giving him sound advice.
Cook told me: “Nobody in the  division  is fitter than Yarde.”
Yarde runs eight miles on London’s roads twice a week, starting at 3am, when the air is at its purist and there is no traffic.
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It takes him an impressive 1hr 15min.
But, as the immortal Joe Louis memorably said before defending against Billy Conn: “He can run,  but he can’t hide!” More