Tyson Fury Vs Denis Boytsov

Update: Fight has been canceled.

Boytsov claimed he is not in shape to fight.

Tyson Fury takes his biggest risk to date by signing to fight one of the more decent up and coming heavyweight prospects to come through over the last few years. Whether Tyson Fury wins or loses, credit has to be given to him for taking this fight. Unbeaten Denis Boytsov is without doubt Fury's toughest fight so far, and it's a big step up in class for Fury, who has been fighting fairly low level opposition for a while. In all fairness Fury has only had 19 fights so we can't really expect him to take on the world just yet. However, a step up in opposition was due, and here it is. We could well see Tyson Fury get outclassed in this fight. Is this fight too big of a risk for Fury to be taking with less then 20 fights under his belt. We shall see. But with the chance of a world title shot in line for the winner it's a chance worth taking.

Tyson Fury is fortunate that this fight is taking place in Belfast, so he has home advantage. Fury will need every advantage possible in order for him to stand a chance of beating Boytsov. Going into this fight out of shape is a definite no no for Fury. He will need to be in better shape then he's ever been in before. Not only are two unbeaten records on the line, but this fight could lead to a real title shot against one of the Klitschko brothers so everything is up for grabs. It looks more likely that the winner will face Vitali Klitschko for the WBC heavyweight title. Punch resistance is going to be a big issue for Tyson Fury in the fight. Boytsov has an 80% knockout ratio.

One advantage Tyson fury does have is his size. Boytsov is a small heavyweight, and even smaller in comparison to Fury. So this is Fury's biggest weapon and he must use it to full effect. He needs to use a Wladimir Klitschko style in order to win this fight. Use his jab and reach to keep the fight at a distance. Once the distance has been closed by Boytsov Fury is in danger of being knocked out. Boytsov can bang, and as we have seen in Tyson Fury's past fights he is very open to over hand punches and has been floored quite a few times against a level of opposition that doesn't even come close to the skill, power and precision of Denis Boytsov. If Boytsov floors Fury the fight could well be over. Denis Boytsov is a terrific finisher and does not let a hurt opponent off the hook. He may hang back and be patient in order to be careful, but he will viciously close the show when the opportunity presents itself.

Tyson Fury fans can only hope that Boytsov is out of his element fighting in Belfast and doesn't perform very well. This is very possible because most of his fights have been in Germany. None have been in the USA or UK. So this will be a new experience for Boytsov. How he performs being away from his adopted home of Germany, in front of a hostile crowd is yet to be seen. I get the feeling though that Boytsov will rise to the occasion. He seems very strong mentally and the type of guy that will be all business, far too focused on getting the win and securing a title shot then to be phased and not perform.

It should be a very good fight between a really big heavyweight with fast hands for his size, limited boxing skills, and a size and weight advantage over most of his opponents. Against a small heavyweight, who looked rather flat in his last fight against Dominick Guinn, and also out of his comfort zone fighting in Belfast, but with good boxing skills and big punching power.

Wladimir Talks About Emanuel Steward

Update: Manuel Steward has passed away. He died on Thurday afternoon (today). Big loss to the boxing world. R.I.P Emanuel Steward.

 Despite all the reports doing the rounds that Emanuel Steward has died, at the time this post was written Emanuel Steward is not dead. He is very ill and under the care of the best doctors, but he is not dead. I'm surprised that some of the biggest news networks have reported that Emanuel Steward is dead when they haven't found out for sure all the facts of the matter. From what I can gather he is not dead but will not be returning to boxing training if he makes a successful recovery.

Wladimir Klitschko is obviously upset by this incident as he has been trained by Emanuel Steward for many years and the pair are close. However, Wladimir being the true professional that he is says - The show must go on. I think that's what Emanuel Steward would want. Get well soon Emanuel Steward.

Video Credit: Ring Polska

Wladimir Klitschko Open Workout

Wladimir Klitschko having an open workout session on the speed ball in the build up to his fight with Mariusz Wach. Wladimir Klitchko, for once, is the smaller man in this latest defense of his titles. Wladimir is smaller but much more skilled then Wach.

Video Credit: Bokser.org

Tyson Fury Vs David Price Heating Up

Tyson Fury and David Price have been linked as foes ever since their amateur days. Tyson Fury did knock David Price to the canvas in the amateurs, but Price came back to win the bout. Their has been talk of Price and Fury fighting as professionals ever since the pair both turned Pro, but it has been simmering for a few years.

Attention was focused on the pair again when Tyson Fury vacated his British titles rather then fight his mandatory challenger, who just happened to be David Price. This raised many questions. People started saying that Tyson Fury was afraid to fight David Price so instead he would vacate the titles. Tyson Fury stated that his reason for vacating the titles was so that he could go after bigger and better things. Fury also said fighting some Southern Area champion (David Price) would achieve nothing.. Personally I don't see how it would achieve nothing. Two of the most promising up and coming British heavyweights fighting for the British titles sounds like a good match up to me. Add to it that Price beat Fury in the Amateurs and you would think that Fury would want revenge and redemption, but obviously not. It does look like he avoided Price on Purpose.

So Tyson Fury vacates the titles to go after the bigger names in order to get a better world ranking and make sure he's heading in a positive direction towards a shot at a world title. So what does he do, he fights a 40 year old Martin Rogan for the Irish title. It's hard to see it any other way other then Fury avoided fighting David Price.

So where does the feud stand today. After Price demolished Audley Harrison in 1 round the talk about Fury fighting Price has flared up again. Not only are people calling Tyson Fury scared, but now the talk has turned pretty mean and personal. Insults aimed at Tyson Fury's wife and family have been doing the rounds online. Not written by Price, but his fans and followers. This has made Fury Furious. He was interviewed on Channel 5 not long after the comments were made and had a hard time keeping himself composed. It was clear to see that he's not happy with either David Price, his fans, and also boxer and close friend to David Price, Tony Bellew. Fury said he'd batter Bellew in between rounds for what he's said so he's clearly not happy with whatever Bellew has been saying.

With all the silly insults aside this fight makes sense in many ways. First and foremost, the British public want to see this fight, that means it would be good for the fans and it would generate a lot of money. Second, both have questionable punch resistance. Tyson Fury has been down numerous times against low level opposition, and Price has been classed as "chinny" since being stopped a few times in the amateurs and not really being tested as a professional in that department yet. It makes for an interesting fight. Tyson Fury said that Price was stiff and robotic but from what Ive seen it's Fury who seems to be stiff, one dimensional, and less mobile.

Will the fight happen, who knows. If both keep on winning then they will be destined to meet at some point. Actually even if they both lose they could still end up fighting. Hopefully not years down the line. Just an example, but look at where we are in terms of Ricky Hatton and Amir Khan. Not long ago people could not see this fight anywhere on their radar and now it's being talked about a lot. It's just a shame that Hatton and Khan could end up fighting when one (or both) are not in their primes anymore. It would be a shame if the same thing happened with Price and Fury.

If these two end up fighting I'd put my money on David Price. He's been very impressive so far and seems to be the one that has the potential to mix at world level.

David Haye Update Interview Video

Sports Vibe caught up with David Haye where he discussed George Groves upcoming fight against veteran Glen Johnson. He also talks about the future of his own boxing career and doesn't know if he will fight again if it's not against one of the Klitschko brothers. Haye also goes on to say that he believes David Price has great potential and could become the heavyweight champion of the world.

Video Credit: Sports Vibe