Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images
A trilogy fight between Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder was scheduled to go down on July 18, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada, but now it seems the bout will be pushed back to a later date. That’s according to longtime ESPN boxing reporter, Dan Rafael, who says the change in plans is all due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic sweeping the globe.
“Clearly not,” Bob Arum told ESPN regarding the fight taking place on July 18. “We don’t even know if the MGM will even be open by then.”
Unlike Dana White and Co., Arum isn’t in the business of staging world title fights behind closed doors, preferring to let more time pass in order to let fans from all over the world attend the championship boxing match.
“You could not guarantee the fighters that the event would take place on that date. We couldn’t convince them or ourselves,” Arum said. “Where were they going to train for it? It just made no sense. You just have to take a step back. How are you going to sell tickets? It’s absolutely ridiculous to say the fight is on when the Brits can’t even get there. So everybody has to take a step back. Boxing is not isolated. It’s part of what’s happening in the world,” Arum said. “So possibly the fight will be in early October,” he added.
“Al and his people are in touch with us all the time on this,” Arum added. “We see things the same way. We’ll be very, very cautious moving ahead and pray this will be over at a particular time and we will be able to make smart plans. Nobody has ever experienced anything like this before.”
Tyson Fury knocked out Wilder in the rematch last month after the two men fought to a split draw in their first encounter in late 2018. Afterward, Wilder came under heavy fire after he blamed his loss on his 45-pound outfit he wore on his way to the ring.
Nevertheless, the two heavyweight brawlers will now have more time to prepare for the all-important third — and perhaps final — fight between them.