Tyson Fury to earn record-breaking purse for his fight with Oleksandr Usyk
When Tyson Fury steps into the ring with Oleksandr Usyk he'll be earning a record-breaking purse for the fight, according to boxing promoter Bob Arum.
Fury has a fight with Francis Ngannou to get through later this month (28 October, to be precise) before he can fully focus on Usyk but a contract to get him in the ring with the Ukrainian has been signed.
The fight will take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, just like the fight with Ngannou, though a date has not yet been decided.
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While Fury and Usyk could have their fight before the end of 2023 it would be quite close to Fury's bout with Ngannou at the end of this month, so boxing fans might have to wait until the new year before they see the one they're really waiting for.
Fury has plenty of reasons to be looking forward to it as well, as according to boxing promoter Bob Arum the purse for his two bouts in Saudi Arabia could earn Fury a combined total of around $200 million (£164 million).
Speaking to ES News, Arum tipped Fury to win his fight with Ngannou and step into the ring with Usyk for a bout which would unite the heavyweight championships while making a fortune to boot.
He said: "Tyson has to take care of business on October 28 when he fights Ngannou, and then we’re off to the races with the unified heavyweight championship.
"If you told Tyson Fury he’s set to make $100 million, he’d really get p**sed off because he thinks, and I think he’s right, that he’s going to make a lot more. I don’t know the number, but it’s a lot more than $100 million."
"Fury, in that fight and the Ngannou fight, in the near future we are hoping that he comes in at around $200 million."
However, not everyone thinks the purse for the fight with Usyk is going to be quite so big, as when Eddie Hearn was asked about the money he said he reckoned the actual figure would be closer to £80 million for the second fight.
Speaking to iFL TV, Hearn said he thought Fury would be making over $100 million (£82 million) from the two fights put together, but the figure could grow if there was a rematch clause in the deal.
He said: "It's probably 30 and 70 and 30 and 80, but I've heard there's a rematch clause, whatever happens. So, it's probably plus.
"Maybe you want a rematch clause. Imagine if I said to you 'you get x for the first and guaranteed x for the second'. You’d go, 'f**k it, I might as well do it'."
Hearn then said that Fury was 'out for the easy money for what is essentially a farewell retirement tour', even though the winner of his fight with Usyk would become the first undisputed heavyweight champion since 1999.
Topics: Tyson Fury, Boxing, Sport
Joe Harker