Random thoughts: Retirement is Fury's call but he owes it to himself to fight once more
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A bunch of boxing random thoughts…
Before Saturday’s fight, heavyweight champion Tyson Fury insisted that he would retire from boxing. After “The Gypsy King” knocked out Dillian Whyte in the sixth round of their spectacle before 94,000 at Wembley Stadium in London, he said he was sticking to it.
No more official boxing matches, Fury said, even though most have a hard time believing him.
Of course, Fury quickly embraced the idea of lucrative exhibitions and already started trying to sell one with UFC heavyweight champ Francis Ngannou, who was next to him in the ring during the post-fight interview as they talked up the prospect of some sort of bout using hybrid rules.
My first instinct as it relates to Fury-Ngannou is no way, won’t happen, exhibition or otherwise.
But back when Floyd Mayweather and UFC star Conor McGregor talked up their possible official boxing match, I said no way at first. Didn’t believe it would happen. Well, it did and became the second-highest grossing combat sports event in history in 2017.
So, a Fury-Ngannou match as an exhibition? I guess I can see it happening at some point. I learned by lesson from Mayweather-McGregor and you know what? I’d be interested because Fury is that compelling.
Fury also spoke about returning to the WWE for a second stint and said he wanted to take on two-time WWE champion Drew McIntyre. That seems almost like a slam dunk to happen.
It’s great if Fury can have fun and would make gobs of money from those sorts of events but I am sure I am not alone in this sentiment: I want to see him fight real boxing matches against top heavyweights.
I am not one tell any fighter what to do but here are facts: Fury is still at the top of his game, he’s the best heavyweight on the planet, he can make boatloads of money and — in his words — he is a fighting man who loves to train and fight.