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Former champion George Groves sees Tyson Fury selecting one of two options for his next fight — and neither of them include Oleksandr Usyk. This past Saturday, Fury was given his toughest test in years from Francis Ngannou, the former UFC champion who nearly defeated the Manchester native in his first trip to the ring. Despite his strong showing — which included a knockdown — the ‘Predator’ lost to Fury via split decision.
Immediately after the fight, Fury faced off with who is supposedly his next opponent in Usyk. Fury vs. Usyk was announced ahead of Fury vs. Ngannou, and now that the former has defeated the latter, all eyes are on Usyk and the upcoming unification. Though the original date has shifted a few times, Team Fury has confirmed we should see him vs. Usyk in February. Not everyone is confident in that timeline, though.
Former champion George Groves says Tyson Fury could have one fight left in him
Former super middleweight champion Georges Groves gave his thoughts on what could happen next for Tyson Fury. In an interview with Sky Sports, ’Saint George’ said the heavyweight champion would either rematch Francis Ngannou or retire.
“There is not a chance that the Usyk fight is happening on that date,” said Groves. “It is not Usyk on the 23rd of December, I don’t think it’s Usyk next. I think it’s either Ngannou or that’s the last of Fury. He’d rather sail off into the sunset. Fury can be a cool character, an interesting character and there’s lots of avenues he can explore after boxing, which won’t be the same.
“Those doors will shut on him if he goes out and gets beat by Usyk,” continued Groves. “I think he’s either going to try and rectify the last fight against Ngannou, which he’ll get paid a lot of money for and a lot of people will be interested in. He will train better and show up and perform, or he might retire.”
One of the reasons Groves gives for Fury potentially pursuing an immediate rematch against Ngannou is because his performance was not what most were expecting. Given that this was the first time the ‘Predator’ had set foot in a ring, the general consensus was that Fury would have the upper hand.
“There’s no way he woke up the next morning without loads of doubts,” said Groves. “Loads of doubts. Do I want it anymore? Do I still got it anymore? Why could I not even handle this guy comfortably, totally out of shape. There are boxing people who understand boxing, and I think Tyson definitely does. He’s had a long route. He’s had to fight away from home, as the underdog, all these sorts of things. And he might be questioning if I really want to do it anymore.”
Tyson Fury has already signed on for Oleksandr Usyk
Tyson Fury has already answered one of George Groves’ questions as he signed on to fight Oleksandr Usyk. Mike Coppinger of ESPN reported on Tuesday that the heavyweights are expected to share the ring in February in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The new timeline gives the 35-year-old time to recover from some injuries he sustained against Ngannou, which included a few cuts.
Though Usyk finally gets his fight with Fury, he is a little frustrated that it continues to get delayed.
“They’re using any excuse to blame me for not being ready, and they keep extending, but that isn’t the case,” said Usyk in an interview with Radio Rahim of SecondsOut. “Fury has to show up and has to fight. Now they’re saying that Tyson might not be ready for it, so the tables have turned. Maybe consider they’re the ones that are talking too much, and maybe nothing is going to happen.”