The Latest News on the Fury – Wilder III Blunder

The Latest News on the Fury – Wilder III Blunder

Yesterday came the news that there was an outbreak of Covid-19 in Tyson Fury’s training camp that would likely force a postponement of Fury’s trilogy fight with Deontay Wilder slated for July 24 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Crackerjack reporter Dan Rafael, formerly the linchpin of boxing reportage at ESPN, unearthed more details. Rafael reports that four individuals, including the Gypsy King himself, tested positive for Covid symptoms. The others are assistant trainer Andy Lee, the former WBO world middleweight champion who is Tyson Fury’s second cousin, former WBO heavyweight champion Joseph Parker, and featherweight Isaac Lowe. A member of the Irish Traveler community like Fury and Lee, Lowe resides in the English seaside community of Morecambe where Fury and his growing family (five kids and another on the way) keep their primary residence. Lowe (pictured on the left) has appeared on the undercard of all four of Fury’s U.S. fights.

This news contradicts co-promoter Bob Arum’s previous assertion that Tyson Fury and all of the key members of his team were fully vaccinated. Rafael reports that Fury had the first shot of the Pfizer vaccine, but not the second.

Scheduling a new date is tricky. Saturday, August 28^th is open, but putting the fight so close to the Spence-Pacquiao fight could dim pay-per-view sales. The theory is that fight fans are reluctant to pony up money for pay-per-view shows on back-to-back weekends.

There is nothing currently booked at the T-Mobile Arena on Saturday, Sept. 11, and Las Vegas figures to be swarming with sports fans with the historic regular season home opener of the Las Vegas Raiders happening two nights later. However, putting the fight on Sept. 11 would rub against the Triller PPV event featuring Teofimo Lopez and Oscar De La Hoya. Plus, the following weekend is Mexican Independence Day Weekend and Canelo Alvarez is expected to sew up that date.

There has been no official word from the promoters as to a new date or even a confirmation that July 24 is dead. Mike Coppinger of The Athletic reports that Fury-Wilder III will likely materialize on Oct. 9. If so, one wonders if the undercard will stay intact. The supporting bouts were very strong.

All of the major sportsbooks have taken Fury-Wilder III off the board. The Gypsy King was a consensus 3/1 favorite, but those odds could drop. Alexander Povetkin’s woeful performance in his rematch with Dillian Whyte was attributed to Covid hangover. (In this regard, Lance Pugmire of The Athletic wrote that Fury was “sick, but not that sick.”)

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