It?s undeniable that Tyson Fury is a one-of-a-kind character with a compelling back story and an engaging gift of gab?but that?s where the intrigue ends. The entertainment stops once ?The Gypsy King? stops talking and starts fighting.
Those who know more about his ring work than his back-from-the-dead twelfth round rise off the canvas against Deontay Wilder back in December know that the 6-foot-9 Irishman is a bit of a chore to watch. Ranging from merely watchable (at best) to tediously dull (at worst), Fury has never been ?must-see TV? for his ring work and even for fans of tactical boxing, who prefer style over brawn, he?s always been a bit too sloppy to be truly appealing.
Before his 2015 unanimous decision over three-belt champ Wladimir Klitschko, Fury was on nobody?s ?must-see? radar despite being a known commodity, precisely because of what a drag it was to watch the mountain of a man run through his sloppy Muhammad Ali routine.
There?s no arguing that what Fury does is effective, the problem is that it isn?t very entertaining. In a lot of ways, he is just as anti-fight negative as Klitschko, whose jab-and-grab strategy dominated the division for nearly a decade, but turned fans off en masse.
However, veteran Hall of Fame promoter Bob Arum insists that Fury is a promotional goldmine and the next big thing on the American fight scene. ESPN, which reportedly dished out $100 million for a multi-year deal with Fury, is also all-in on the big man.
?I?ve had some guys who were not shy, fighters such as Muhammad Ali and George Foreman,? Arum said at a recent teleconference. ?[Fury] is right up with there with those two guys. People can relate to him. I?ve never seen an outpouring of fans like we have right now who root for Tyson Fury.
??He has the ability to capture the imagination. That?s what we hope to accomplish with him. This guy is a force in and of himself in and out of the ring.?
Set to meet unknown, unheralded German pug Tom Schwarz at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas this Saturday in the first bout of his new ESPN deal, Fury is being Fury while titillating friendly, giggly media with his bad boy charm and extreme quotability.
?He?s (Schwarz) just seen Andy Ruiz beat Joshua and that will have elevated him to new levels,? Fury told RingTV. ?But, honestly, I don?t care. I can deal with anybody who?s in my way. I cannot be defeated. I must break him.
?I?m living the American dream at the minute. I don?t think I?ll box in the U.K. anymore to be honest with you. I?m now a U.S. commodity. I have a good tan, I?m planning on a penis extension and a Brazilian wax.
?The goals have always been the same when it comes to boxing,? Fury continued. ?I want to enjoy myself and kick a lot of ass. That is it. I want to be happy with what the good Lord has given me.?
Yes, extreme quotability?just don?t ask him about Jews, homosexuals, or the purpose of women in society. Dig through the Fury archives a bit and there?ll be some nastiness there that could send the Disney-controlled ESPN scurrying for loopholes to remove themselves from any and all contractual ties to the former champ.
But, so far, everything is playing out as usual prior to a Tyson Fury bout. There?s plenty of bluster from Fury, lots of giddy boxing media surrounding him, and direct threats of bodily harm to his opponent that everybody knows are empty words (because, these days, Fury the Stylist is more likely to hurt feelings than opposition).
This time out, with Andy Ruiz?s defeat of Anthony Joshua fresh in everyone?s mind, there?s also plenty of upset talk in an effort to portray a designed soft touch network debut as an ?anything can happen? event.
In the big picture of ?big three? heavyweight intended-soft touches in recent weeks, the undefeated 6-foot-5 Schwarz is closer to Ruiz than to Deontay Wilder?s Dominic Breazeale, but that doesn?t mean that he?s all that likely to flip any scripts. Schwarz can throw hands a bit and fights with confidence, but he has massive defensive liabilities and will likely struggle mightily in dealing with any opposition mobility. The biggest name on Schwarz?s 24-fight resume is Christian Lewandowski and that?s using the word ?big? literally, as in ?having a longer name than any other opponent,? because, really, the 25-year-old has fought nobody of note.
Fury should win fairly decisively this Saturday and he may even stop Schwarz late in the fight if the underdog gasses from being on the chase all night long. But what we probably won?t be seeing is a fight?or at least the kind of fight that energizes and attracts the masses.
And what kind of shot does Fury have to reach the masses, anyway, with the bout airing on the ESPN+ subscriber-only streaming app?
Arum, though, is really selling this fight and the emergence of Fury as a next-level, game-changing figure, calling Fury-Schwarz ?very important for boxing? and predicting that it?ll bring in more subscribers to ESPN+ than the 560K the UFC brought in with their app debut.
While Fury?s mic skills and colorful history may pique the interest of fans, bringing some to ESPN+ for an impulse buy, it?s hard to imagine many of those much-needed casual-curious sports fans sticking around after they realize that the best part of the Tyson Fury show is the talking.
