Heavyweight boxing

TYSON FURY has revealed he applauded Sky Sports’ Adam Smith when he slammed Johnny Nelson for labelling Oleksandr Usyk an ‘average southpaw’. Nelson, who was cruiserweight world champion between 1999 and 2005, incredibly claimed last year that pound-for-pound superstar Usyk was not a standout boxer compared to other southpaws.
Fury has defended Usyk’s ability as he praised Smith for his assessment of the UkrainianCredit: Getty
Smith hailed Usyk as a fantastic fighter – both as an amateur and a professionalCredit: Getty
Sky Sports presenter and commentator Smith took umbrage to that view.
And Fury has now revealed he agreed with Smith in slamming Nelson’s controversial point.
Grabbing the mic and interviewing the Sky man on iFL TV, Fury said: “A couple of months ago Johnny Nelson said to you that Oleksandr Usyk is an average southpaw cruiserweight.
“And I was actually very impressed with your thing. You was absolutely livid, absolutely boiling. You was like ‘arghhhh’. Can you tell us a bit more about it?”
And Smith explained: “I was doing an interview and Johnny just said he was an average southpaw and I just took complete offence to that.
“I think he is a fantastic fighter. I think he was a wonderful amateur. He was brilliant against Joshua and I thought that was a disgraceful thing for my good friend and colleague to say.
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“But there we go, that’s his opinion.”
Fury then replied: “I was actually clapping in the room because that was amazing. So well done for that.”
Usyk, an Olympic gold medallist from London 2012, beat Anthony Joshua by unanimous decision at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in September to claim the IBF, WBA and WBO world titles.
Since then, there have been ongoing talks about a rematch.
But those discussions have taken a back seat since former undisputed cruiserweight champion Usyk decided to fight on the frontline for his country against the Russian invasion.
And Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn has confirmed – with Usyk’s situation in Ukraine taking priority – that AJ may consider an interim bout while he waits for the chance to become a three-time world heavyweight champion.
Hearn said: “It’s difficult to speak on behalf of Oleksandr Usyk.
“Firstly, my thoughts are with everybody in Ukraine and people showing incredible bravery out there, particularly some of the great fighters of the past and Oleksandr as well.
“He can have the time that he needs. We [Joshua’s camp] don’t want any other fight but Oleksandr Usyk.
“Whether there’s a delay for that fight and we have an interim bout, I guess that’s subject to the situation with Oleksandr Usyk and how much time he needs.
“It’s a very emotional time and personal time for the people of Ukraine. So we’ll respect them and give them all the time, but we wouldn’t be looking to get out of our obligation, is what I’m saying.
“The only fight AJ wants right now is Oleksandr Usyk. If we have to fight in between, no problem at all, but we’ll respect this time for Oleksandr Usyk and speak to his advisers.

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“If there needs to be a delay for the contractual period, we will be happy to grant that, but we want that fight.
“We don’t want that obligation to slide away.”
Meanwhile, Fury will defend his WBC title against fellow Brit Dillian Whyte at Wembley Stadium on April 23. More

TYSON FURY denied being dropped by Dillian Whyte in sparring and claimed: ‘I used him as a punching bag’. The heavyweight rivals, both 33, climbed the ranks together and were former training partners.
Tyson Fury denied being dropped by Dillian Whyte in sparringCredit: Rex
Fury claimed he used Dillian Whyte as ‘a punching bag’ in sparring
But over the years their relationship soured and is due to be settled on April 23 at Wembley.
In the past, Whyte claimed he floored Fury on more than one occasion during one of their now-famed sparring sessions.
He said on Sky Sports: “I don’t like telling sparring stories, but people in the game know. They know about me.
“Well, me and Tyson Fury sparred and I bashed him about and dropped him on multiple occasions. Simple as that.”
But Fury tells a different story, one that includes beating Whyte so badly his cousin Hughie, a teenager at the time, had to replace him.
He told Carl Frampton for BT Sport: “I’ve sparred Dillian Whyte many, many times. And every single time I used him as a punching bag.
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“There were times when he couldn’t defend himself and there was a time where we had to stop the sparring and Hughie had to spar him, my cousin Hughie instead.
“Hughie was about 18 at the time and he used to batter him.
“All these stories of him knocking me down 25 times in sparring – highly unlikely anyone believes that rubbish.”
Fury was quick to again refute Whyte’s sparring allegation – but insisted it would not matter even if it was true.
He said: “There’s no substance to it, knocking me down umpteen times and all that.
“Just say he did knock me down eight times in sparring, we all know sparring ain’t fighting, is it?
“How many times have you seen people in the gym get absolutely busted up and then on fight night they boxed like Sugar Ray Leonard?
“Sometimes you don’t have good days in the gym, bad days whatever, but sparring ain’t fighting.
“And just for the record, he never knocked me down once. I’ve never been knocked down in a spar, ever.”
Hughie Fury, Dillian Whyte, Peter Fury and Tyson Fury More

AMIR KHAN reportedly has no intention of retiring and is planning to activate his rematch clause with Kell Brook.Khan fell victim to a sixth-round technical knockout at the hands of Brook when the pair met last month.
Khan reportedly has no plans to retire and will activate the rematch clause with BrookCredit: Getty
Khan lost the first bout to Brook but reports claim he feels hard done by and wants another crack at his long-time foeCredit: Rex
But Brook is reportedly willing to give Khan what he wants as he’s adamant he’ll defeat the Bolton native once againCredit: Getty
And the Bolton-born boxer declared that he was considering hanging up his gloves after the all-British spectacle as he ‘no longer loved the sport’.
Khan’s retirement claims were then echoed by his wife Faryal Makhdoom who thanked her hubby for his contribution to boxing in a social media post.
But according to boxing promoter Ben Shalom, Khan’s had a change of heart and wants to have another crack at Brook.
SunSport reported on Saturday that Khan was mulling over whether to step in the ring again.
And now, in an interview with Sky Sports, Shalom’s confirmed that the whispers of Khan’s return are true.
Shalom claims that Khan’s motivation behind a potential rematch with Brook is that he was hard done by in their first bout as Special K had more time to train than him.
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Shalom said to Sky: “I think the word on the street is true, Amir Khan doesn’t want to call it a day.
“He’s had a lot of time to think about the fight over the last few weeks, and he feels like he only had ten weeks to prepare and Kell Brook had six months.
“He feels hard done by.”
And Brook seems willing to grant Khan his wishes for a rematch if that’s what he wants.
But the former IBF world champion is adamant that the result will be exactly the same this time around.
Brook said, reported by Michael Benson on Twitter: “If he wants another whooping, he can have another whooping.
“It was so one-sided, I don’t know what he can say. If he wants that rematch, I’ll dust them gloves off and do it again.”
However, Brook has his sights set elsewhere as it has been announced that he is in talks to fight welterweight champion Conor Benn.
And Khan will have to move quickly if he wants to get to Brook before Benn as he’s only got a week left to activate the rematch clause. More

JOHN FURY delivered son Tyson a TRUCK promoting his new energy drink range ahead of the WBC heavyweight title showdown with Dillian Whyte next month.The Gypsy King faces his British compatriot at Wembley on April 23 in what is his first fight in the United Kingdom since August 2018.
John Fury gifted Tyson Fury a truck ahead of his world title fight against Dillian WhyteCredit: Instagram / @gypsyjohnfury
The vehicle displays images of Fury’s energy drink range ‘Furocity’Credit: Instagram / @gypsyjohnfury
John Fury labelled the motor as a ‘beast’ in footage he uploaded on his Instagram storyCredit: Instagram / @gypsyjohnfury
Tickets sold out in just 90 minutes for the blockbuster domestic dust-up in the capital.
And prior to the bout, John Fury has delivered the unbeaten Mancunian a truck to help with his training camp.
Fury’s dad posted footage of the motor on his Instagram story to his 244,000 followers.
In the clip, John can be seen sitting in the driving seat, with messages of ‘hit your day harder’ plastered over the vehicle.
Images of Fury’s ‘Furocity’ energy drink range also cover the truck with the thirst-quencher available in supermarket Iceland.
The video then sees Tyson locking up the truck after a drive, with John labelling it as a ‘beast of a thing’.
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Tyson Fury could be seen locking up the motor following a drive in the truckCredit: Instagram / @gypsyjohnfury
The Gypsy King faces Whyte at Wembley on April 23 as he defends his WBC titleCredit: Instagram / @gypsyjohnfury
Fury is hoping to see a record British crowd of over 100,000 people cram into Wembley to watch his fight with Whyte.
Anthony Joshua’s 2017 win over Wladimir Klitschko at Wembley was in front of 90,000 people, but Fury vs Whyte could smash that figure.
An application has been made to increase the normal capacity.
Fury told talkSPORT: “We had those great nights in Las Vegas, a lot of fans turned out for that.
“It’s down to me to come home and put on a big fight in the UK and give all the fans that travelled abroad, and ones who couldn’t travel, come and see me in the flesh and see the fight.
“It’s going to be an absolutely epic night. I’ve been told it will be open to 103,000 people, which will be the biggest gate in British boxing history by far. It’s going to be an electric night, I cannot wait.
“The Gypsy King returns home, to the throne and a defence in an all British showdown. I cannot wait.”

He added: “I’m absolutely ecstatic, can’t believe it. The boys are back in town, four years in the making.
“I’ve been away on the road for four years in Las Vegas, Los Angeles and been all over the place.
“I’m glad to be back home in the capital city, boxing in the biggest stadium in the country. It’s very, very exciting for me.” More

AMIR KHAN is set to exercise his right to a rematch with Kell Brook, but Special K has his eyes on a bout with Conor Benn.Khan and Brook finally met in February after two decades worth of conflict.
Brook defeated Khan with a sixth round TKOCredit: Rex
Brook now has his sights set on a fight with Conor BennCredit: PA
Brook dominated the fight from the start and was declared the winner in the sixth round with a technical knockout.
Many fans expected Khan to hang up his gloves for good following the defeat, but he has since declared that he wants a rematch.
However, Brook has his sights set elsewhere as it has been announced that he is in talks to fight welterweight champion Conor Benn.
He is demanding a huge fee to fight the star.
When speaking to iFL TV, Eddie Hearn said: “I don’t want to tell you what he asked for but it was slightly OTT.
“I have heard, actually, that Amir Khan is going to invoke the rematch clause, bizarrely.
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“People have already been contacting us to ask if we’d like to pay a step-aside for them not to invoke the rematch clause.
“No, you are alright thanks! You go and do Khan-Brook II and we’ll crack on.
“I told Conor Benn the other day that ‘you are a young superstar and don’t worry about basing your career around someone else, don’t worry about trying to land this payday – everything is going to come for you.’
“We will crack on with his career and his next fight will be announced for April 16 and we’ll be ready for a huge show for Conor Benn.”
Hearn has not disregarded the idea of a bout between the two, and has admitted he would like to see the pair meet one day.
He added: “We will carry on talking to Kell Brook as we’d love to make the fight.
“But what we said to Kell Brook and his training team is that if they want to fight in June or July then we won’t fight in April.
“I think if Kell Brook stays out of the ring for a long time then he won’t fight again, so that is what we were trying to do.
“It’s no big deal and we’ll carry on talking to try and get it made.”
Khan has around one week to officially activate the rematch clause.
He put his loss to Brook down to the fact that he ‘underestimated’ his opponent. More