Tag: heavyweights

Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury begin promotion for Feb. 22 rematch

The promotion for Deontay Wilder-Tyson Fury II has begun, after both fighters took to their social media to announce ticket information.

The official promotional campaign for Deontay Wilder-Tyson Fury II has begun.

After weeks of radio silence, both fighters simultaneously took to social media to announce their highly anticipated heavyweight title rematch on Feb. 22 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, including ticket information.

“After February 22nd there will be no more unanswered questions,” Wilder wrote. “I will finish what I started, and this time @Tyson_Fury will not be getting up off that canvas so quickly. I’ve proven myself time and time again and I will do it again in February.”

The first fight, which took place at Staples Center on Dec. 1, 2018, ended in a controversial draw that saw the hard-hitting Wilder score two knockdowns but get largely outboxed by the dexterous Fury. The fight is famous for Fury’s ability to get off the canvas from what appeared to be a fight-ending punch in the 12th and final round.

“I’m happy and I’m excited that the rematch is finally happening,” Wilder said in a release. “I want to give the fans what they want to see. I’ve been doing it with my last three outings – Fury, Breazeale and Ortiz. They’ve been spectacular events – from my ring walks where I gather all the energy of the people, to my uniforms that I wear to help spread that energy.

“Then I give them what they all come for – the knockouts, and my knockouts have been amazing. I proved myself the first time and I’m ready to do it again. It was a very controversial fight. I promise my fans that there won’t be any controversy with this one. I’m going to finish it.”

“There’s no more ducking and diving,” Fury said in a release. “The date has been set, and the ‘Bomb Squad’ is about to be securely detonated and the real champion crowned as the world watches on for the most anticipated fight in years. This is unfinished business for me, but come February 22, this dosser will finally get what’s coming to him, and I can’t wait!”

The rematch will be a pay-per-view collaboration between rivals Top Rank/ESPN and PBC/Fox. The fight is expected to be heavily promoted on the networks during their respective NFL super bowl coverage. Top Rank boss Bob Arum has gone so far as to say that he expects 2 million buys. However the rematch plays out, various outlets have reported that a third fight is already in the works for the summer.

 

Daniel Dubois stops Kyotaro Fujimoto in second round

Daniel Dubois wasted no time in stopping Kyotaro Fujimoto in the second round of their heavyweight bout at the Copper Box Arena in London.

Daniel Dubois ended 2019 the way he began it: With a no-frills knockout win.

The rising British heavyweight stopped Japan’s Kyotaro Fujimoto in the second round Saturday at the Copper Box Arena in London, bringing to a close a banner year that began with a knockout of Razvan Cojanu in the same round in March.

It was business as usual for Dubois, who neutralized Fujimoto with his jab before putting him down early in the second round. Moments later, Dubois iced him for good with a deftly-placed straight right.

The official time of stoppage was 2:10.

“I knew I had the power, and I was really confident in what I was going to do tonight,” Dubois (14-0, 13 knockouts) said. “What can I say? The light switched on, and that was good night.”

It’s the fifth knockout win in as many fights in 2019 for the London native, who also drubbed journeymen Razvan Cojanu, Richard Lartey and Ebenezer Tetteh. His most notable was win came against domestic rival Nathan Gorman, whom he steamrolled inside five rounds.

Not surprisingly, there is now growing anticipation for Dubois to face some of his dangerous countrymen, such as Joe Joyce, or, if you’re Dubois’ promoter Frank Warren, possibly even the recently re-crowned Anthony Joshua.

“Some people may laugh about it,” Warren said in the press conference before Saturday’s fight. “If I could make (Dubois) against Anthony Joshua, I would make it. I’m so confident. I would make that fight today. And I know who I’d have my money on.”

In any case, the drum roll has begun for the 22-year-old Dubois to face a legitimate threat in 2020.

Dillian Whyte hopes Anthony Joshua beats Andy Ruiz, wants rematch

Dillian Whyte will be rooting for Anthony Joshua when he takes on Andy Ruiz in a heavyweight title rematch on December 7 in Saudi Arabia.

When Anthony Joshua ducks through the ropes to face Andy Ruiz in their highly anticipated rematch on December 7 in Saudi Arabia (live on DAZN), he will have a former opponent rooting for him at ringside: Dillian Whyte.

“I hope he can improve and move on from what happened in June and win, and I want him to win,” Whyte told Sky Sports in a recent interview. “It’s better for me, it’s better for him, it’s better for British boxing.

“It’s been a long time since British boxing had so many heavyweights at the top.”

Whyte fought Joshua in 2015, buzzing Joshua at one point before getting steamrolled in the seventh round. He will fight Mariusz Wach in a 10-rounder on the Ruiz-Joshua card amid an ongoing PED scandal.

Whyte offered some thoughts on what Joshua needs to do to be victorious in the rematch.

“I just hope that Joshua hasn’t listened to what people have been saying, that he needs to lose weight, that he needs to change this, because when you take too much of that negativity, it can take away from your main strength,” Whyte said. “His main strength is being big and strong and powerful and being in physical condition more than guys he fought before.”

Whyte believes that Joshua needs to refrain from brawling and fight on the outside to be successful.

“What Joshua needs to do is drag the fight,” Whyte said. “Use his feet and his range. Get his jab going and hold him as well. Holding is part of defense as well, it’s not just using your feet all the time. Get his jab going and make it a boring fight and clip him when he’s unaware. … You need to bide your time with some fighters and break them down, give them different looks. I think that’s what he needs to do.”

Asked whether he believes Joshua will win, Whyte demurred.

“It’s heavyweight boxing, man,” he said. “I can’t say he’s going to win. I hope he wins, but you never know. sometimes fighters lose and it makes them stronger. Sometimes fighters lose and it makes them weaker. When I lost, it made me stronger. Other guys it made them weaker. I don’t know.”

Still, for Whyte’s sake, he hopes Joshua will be victorious.

“Everything is just hope at the moment,” he said. “I don’t know where he is in his life. Boxing is a hard, dangerous game. Win, lose or draw, I would still like the rematch. Even if he loses his next 10 fights, I still want the rematch.”

Dillian Whyte to fight on Ruiz-Joshua II card in wake of PED scandal

Dillian Whyte will take on Mariusz Wach on the undercard of the Andy Ruiz vs. Anthony Joshua rematch, despite his ongoing drug scandal.

Dillian Whyte has been quieter than a church mouse for the past several months but we’ll hear from him soon.

The British heavyweight contender will take on Mariusz Wach on the undercard of the Andy Ruiz Jr.-Anthony Joshua rematch Dec. 7 in Saudi Arabia, it was confirmed in a release today. The news comes as Whyte has been embroiled in a PED scandal that has seen him disappear recently from the public eye.

Whyte tested positive for a banned substance before his July 20 fight against Oscar Rivas, in which Whyte survived a ninth round knockdown to win a unanimous decision. The test was administered by UK Anti-Doping.

Whyte’s “A” sample reportedly showed small amounts of epimethandienone and hydroxymethandienone, which are metabolites found in the banned substance Dianabol.

It was revealed afterward that the British Board of Boxing Control, as well as Whyte and his promoter, Eddie Hearn of Matchroom Boxing, had been notified of the results before the fight while Rivas and his team were kept in the dark. Hearn said he couldn’t share his knowledge of the test results because of confidentiality requirements.

The BBBofC reportedly conducted a hearing before the fight, which included UKAD, and Whyte was cleared to participate in the fight against Rivas without Rivas’ knowledge.

Whyte isn’t the only fighter on the card to have failed a drug test. Wach, Alexander Povetkin (who takes on Michael Hunter) and Eric Molina (who faces Filip Hrgovic) also have tested positive for banned substances.

Ruiz-Joshua II will stream on DAZN.

Daniel Dubois vs. Kyotaro Fujimoto, or the latest Frank Warren mismatch

Daniel Dubois faces Kyotaro Fujimoto on December 21 at the Copper Box Arena in London. Fujimoto struggled twice against a career 160-pounder.

OPINION

Call it a Frank Warren special.

Rising British heavyweight Daniel Dubois – and one of Warren’s most vital promotional assets – is set to face Tokyo’s Kyotaro Fujimoto on December 21 at the Copper Box arena in London. It will be Dubois’ fifth fight of the year, highlighted by his solid knockout win over domestic rival Nathan Gorman in the summer. It’s clear, however, that when it comes to charting out Dubois’ promotional future, he will be led along the path of least resistance.

In his last fight, Dubois (13-0, 12 knockouts) snuffed out Ebenezer Tetteh in one woebegone round. Sure, Tetteh was undefeated, but if you look closely, his record was built on the backs of undistinguished middleweights and light heavyweights in his native Ghana. Middleweights. Yes, you read that correctly.

Enter Fujimoto.

The 33-year-old may not have a record as visibly padded as Tetteh’s, but like the Ghanian, he has at least one instance of fighting a career middleweight, Nobuhiro Ishida. Remember that name? Ishida was the middleweight who scored a stunning knockout of a prime James Kirkland in 2011. His name would come up again later in 2013 under different circumstances, when then trailblazing Gennadiy Golovkin starched him inside three rounds.

How can Daniel Dubois grow as a fighter against pushovers? Julian Finney / Getty Images

For some strange reason, Ishida decided to move up to heavyweight and took on Fujimoto – and it was competitive! Though Ishida dropped a unanimous decision, he gave Fujimoto enough of a fit to call for a rematch, which Fujimoto would win by a split decision.

Anyway, this is who Dubois will be fighting, and while it’s to be commended that he is staying active, it’s not clear how he will improve against dramatically inferior opponents. Of course, anything can happen in the ring, as just about every promoter in the game will tell you to justify his self-interested motives.

It seems the fight has already become something of a joke.  In a strange twist during a press conference to announce it, Fujimoto brought in a sparring partner dressed as a panda and began comparing himself to Rocky Balboa.

“He thinks he’s going to be Rocky Balboa? If he starts getting hit with the type of shots Rocky got hit with in the films, then it’s going to be a short night,” Dubois said.

Short night, indeed.