The highly anticipated third fight between WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury and challenger Deontay Wilder could happen earlier than expected, as both camps have confirmed Dec. 19 as a potential date for the bout.
According to Top Rank chairman Bob Arum, one of Fury’s promoters, both camps are looking at Dec. 19, with Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas emerging as a potential host.
Arum: Limited Seating Possible for December Fight
Fury and Wilder last fought on Feb. 22 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, also in Las Vegas. Fury (30-0-1, 21 KOs) won the fight by TKO in the seventh round.
According to Arum, both sides are aiming to hold a fight with an audience, even if the coronavirus pandemic limits attendance.
“That is the date that we all want,†Arum said, via The Las Vegas Review-Journal. “That’s the date that both sides are happy with. Whether we’ll be able to do it in the stadium with limited seating, that’s in the hands of the gods.â€
The Las Vegas Raiders will call Allegiant Stadium home, but Arum says that won’t interfere with the fight date.
“The Raiders are playing on that Thursday, which is perfect,†Arum told ESPN. “After the game is over, we put up the ring and so forth. We have a couple of days to do it, and Saturday we have the fight.â€
Wilder’s camp also confirmed that Dec. 19 as a potential fight date. Wilder (42-1-1, 41 KOs) exercised the guaranteed rematch clause included in the contract for the second fight to secure the trilogy bout.
The first fight between the two ended in a controversial split decision draw after Fury controlled most of the action while Wilder scored two knockdowns. In the second fight, Wilder’s corner threw in the towel midway through the seventh round during a bout that Fury dominated from start to finish.
FanDuel Sportsbook lists Fury as a significant -350 favorite over Wilder (+250) on any hypothetical fight before the end of 2021.
Marsellos Wilder Accuses Fury of Foul Play
Earlier this week, Marsellos Wilder – Deontay Wilder’s brother – posted a message via an Instagram story that accuses Fury of foul play during the second fight.
“It was discovered by doctors that my brother has a dent in the side of his head [due] to a blunt object struck against his head from his last fight,†Wilder wrote. “No glove or fist was able to cause the damage according to the autopsy.â€
Fury responded to the allegations with his own message on Instagram.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CCBsJibJ92n/
“Getting punched on the temple will do that to you, but not unless Deontay Wilder’s own trainer Jay Deas is in on the conspiracy theory as well, along with all the Las Vegas state commission guys who never left the room,†Fury said. “Next time I’ll put a dent in his boxing career and end it because it will be two knockout losses in a row and bye, bye forever.â€
