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Fundora’s Promoter Denies Crawford’s Fight Offer

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Terence Crawford

Sampson Lewkowicz, Sebastian Fundora’s promoter, revealed how the negotiations about the fight with Terence Crawford’s representative went.

Crawford, 36, last stepped into the ring against Errol Spence in July 2023. That fight was won by technical knockout in the ninth round by Terence. He has 40 wins (31 by knockout) and no losses.

On March 31 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, the 26-year-old Fundora defeated Tszyu by split decision and won the WBO and WBC light middleweight titles. Sebastian’s previous fight was in April 2023, when he lost to Brian Mendoza by knockout in the seventh round. He has 21 wins (13 by knockout), one loss and one draw on his record.

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BOXING

Jared Anderson is the heir to Tyson Fury’s throne and explains why Daniel Dubois is not

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Jared Anderson is one of the most exciting prospects in heavyweight boxing.

As Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua and Oleksandr Usyk near the end of their respective careers, the debate over who will reign supreme among the next generation of heavyweight stars intensifies.

Anderson, who has barely put a foot wrong in the paid ranks (besides a wobbly moment against Charles Martin last year), is expected to be right up their in the mix.

A number of media outlets have branded him ‘a heavyweight world champion in waiting’ while Fury – who has sparred Anderson several times – is tipping him as the ‘heir to his throne’.

But the undefeated (16-0) 24-year-old isn’t alone at the top of the pile.

Anderson acknowledges Tokyo gold medallist Bakhodir Jalolov and youth world champion Justis Huni as two of his toughest tests for years to come – even if he does think the former is ‘very basic’

“It’s tough to say, one punch can change everybody’s career. So, it’s tough to say,” Anderson told talkSPORT.com when asked who he feels will be up there with him in the next few years.

“I think there’s a few skilful fighters, there’s Justis Huni, I think he’s very skilful, let’s see where he goes.

“Jalolov, he’s cool. I don’t think he’s easy to figure out but once you get past that length he’s very basic.

“He’s a stick to-his one-two type of fighter. I think that’s more of a timing issue for most people.”

But one man he doesn’t expect to be dining at the top table with is Britain’s Daniel Dubois.

“I believe he’ll be in the mix, but I don’t think he’s a top name. I think he’s a robot. He’s too stiff,” said Anderson of Dubois.

“I think he’s got a lot work on, he needs to be a lot more agile but he’s a strong so we’ll see.”

‘Triple D’ has endured a career full of ups and downs.

There was a lot of excitement surrounding him when he turned over as a professional at 19 years old.

However, stoppage losses to Joe Joyce and Usyk have seen his stock fall and now he finds himself at a crossroads in his career.

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BOXING

Masters: Nick Faldo takes shot at “dead silent” Phil Mickelson, LIV Golf

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A lot of the talk going into The Masters Champions Dinner was focused on whether players would enjoy Jon Rahm’s menu. It was strange to see that conversation stir up so much chatter.

After all, who doesn’t like tapas.

To no one’s surprise, coming out of the meal everyone seemed to have a good time and enjoyed the food. Rahm even detailed how comfortable everyone seemed despite numerous LIV Golf players attending.

But maybe that is because the typically loudest among them had fallen quiet.

At least, that is what Sir Nick Faldo hinted at.

“Phil was very quiet on Tuesday; he didn’t say a word,” Faldo said to Sky Sports during the first round of The Masters. “He was dead quiet, standing next to me. I wonder why.”

Mickelson is not usually one to remain silent. But it appears as though he was able to read the room.

Reading has always been a skill of his, as Mickelson has had a penchant for putting. That was on display yet again during his first round at Augusta.

Lefty posted a 1-over 73 but was able to gain 1.32 strokes on the field. It was the rest of his game that was not up to par.

Faldo made sure to allude to that as well.

“He’s a hell of a player, but he’s going to have to make a little bit more effort to step it up and get the right intensity,” said Faldo.

“He has been playing resort courses in his shorts for the last couple of months and hasn’t really been tested yet.”

This year’s Masters Tournament has certainly tested all of the players. High winds with gusts up to 45 miles per hour Friday have wreaked havoc on the field.

Only 24 of the 89 players are under par as of Friday afternoon. Of those, only nine of them are 3-under or better.

That includes co-leaders Max Homa and Bryson DeChambeau, who are playing fantastic golf.

Meanwhile, Mickelson is tied for 35th at 1-over a couple holes into his second round. The current cut line sits at 3-over, so Lefty might have a shot to prove Faldo wrong yet.

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BOXING

‘Size really matters’: Tyson Fury says Usyk is too small to unify titles

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Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury

Tyson Fury has declared it is “my time, my destiny, my era and my generation” before his big showdown with Oleksandr Usyk.

Fury, the WBC champion, is set to fight Ukraine’s WBA, IBF and WBO title-holder Usyk on 18 May in Saudi Arabia in the first undisputed world heavyweight bout of the century.

Regarding his opponent, the former unified cruiserweight champion who made his heavyweight debut in 2019, Fury told a press conference on Wednesday: “It’s not personal, it’s strictly business for both fighters. There’s a lot of stuff on the line, but I don’t hate him, he don’t hate me.

“I respect him, as a man, as a fighter. Everyone has to respect the man’s achievements. Good fighter – I have a tough challenge in front of me. But I’m very confident in my ability and I’m very confident I’ll beat the guy.

“When the cruiserweights step up to the big boys, usually they get found wanting. You can beat the average big ones but you can’t beat the elite big ones, because size really matters. We have weight divisions for a reason and he’s going to be found wanting when he fights me on May 18. This is my time, my destiny, my era and my generation. Fact.”

Fury, who called himself an “encyclopaedia on boxing”, referred to a number of examples of cruiserweights stepping up, including Evander Holyfield, who lost an undisputed heavyweight clash with Lennox Lewis in 1999.

This contest had originally been scheduled for 17 February, but was postponed 15 days prior to that after Fury suffered a cut above his right eye in sparring. The 35-year-old said: “At first I was a little depressed, for the first day or so, but afterwards, like all things in life, I realised God’s timing is impeccable, perfect. It’s not late, it’s not early, it’s bang on time. It wasn’t my time to fight then, but it is going to be my time on May 18.

“I’m in fantastic shape. I’m having a fantastic training camp and have got a good team around me, everything is going to plan. I’m working very hard, I’ve got my Dad [John Fury] in camp this time, so I’ve got my secret weapon. We’ve got a full circus camp, so can’t do any more really.”

He later added: “I think if I didn’t train at all for this camp, I just came in at like 25 stone, and sank maybe 15 pints of Peroni beforehand, and the next day got in there, what is he [Usyk] going to do – jab me around? Take nothing away, but he couldn’t do anything with Derek Chisora (who Usyk beat in a heavyweight fight in 2020). It was a 50-50 fight.”

Since beating Chisora, Usyk has recorded unanimous and split-decision victories against Anthony Joshua and a ninth-round knockout against Daniel Dubois.

Wednesday’s press conference at the Mazuma Mobile Stadium in Morecambe, near where Fury lives, saw his father, trainer SugarHill Steward, promoter Frank Warren and manager Spencer Brown all predict a knockout victory for the Briton over his fellow unbeaten fighter Usyk. Fury himself then joked: “I’m going to go for Usyk to knock me out in the first round – I’m going to go for it, why not?”

Fury (34-0-1, 24 KOs) first became world champion with victory over Usyk’s compatriot Wladimir Klitschko in 2015. He added: “I said if I can’t beat old Wlad, I must be useless, and I’ll say it again – if I can’t beat Usyk, I’m no good clearly. That’s your headline. If Tyson Fury can’t beat Usyk, Tyson’s no good, end of. But if I beat him, I beat another man, great, fantastic – on to the next one.”

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BOXING

Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk: Promoter demands ‘very strong’ referee for undisputed heavyweight title fight

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Oleksandr Usyk

Frank Warren, the co-promoter of Tyson Fury, believes the officials will need to be “very strong” in the undisputed heavyweight championship fight next month against Oleksandr Usyk; Watch Fury vs Usyk live on Sky Sports Box Office on May 18

The referee of the Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Uysk undisputed heavyweight title fight must be “very strong,” demands promoter Frank Warren.

Fury will fight Usyk for the four major belts, the WBC, WBA, WBO and IBF titles, on May 18, live on Sky Sports Box Office.

Warren, who co-promotes Fury, is concerned by Usyk’s last fight. Then, when fighting Daniel Dubois whom Warren also represents, Usyk was given plenty of time to recover from what referee Luis Pabon deemed to be a low blow.

The promoter remains convinced that the punch was legal, insisting Usyk’s beltline was too high and the referee’s call was unjust.

He does not want to see a repeat of that incident against Fury.

Warren called for a “very strong” referee in this undisputed heavyweight championship fight.

“We want to get all these things done. We want no controversy. We want somebody in there who everybody respects and will be very, very strong,” he told Sky Sports.

“The last referee was just a joke. Completely ridiculous the whole thing. Whether it was a low blow or not, the time he gave him and then, when he wanted to fight, he said ‘no, take more time out’.”

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BOXING

“I Want To Kick His A”: Ryan Garcia Calls Out Terence Crawford Pound-for-Pound King Despite Showing Respect

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Terence and Ryan

Ryan Garcia has issued a challenge to the pound-for-pound king, Terence Crawford. However, the reason for him to hotly pursue a super fight might not be alluring to the fans. The American boxer wants to show the undisputed welterweight champion his place. Can he do it?

‘KingRy’ is currently gearing up for his fight with Devin Haney, scheduled for April 20. But his social media shenanigans have attracted eyeballs as those continue to evoke concerns and amusement among fans. This time, he has challenged ‘Bud’ in a quirky manner, expressing his desire to “kick his as*.”

Ryan Garcia wants an unlikely match with Terence Crawford

Garcia, 25, turned to his X handle and expressed his respect for the welterweight champion for his numerous accolades. But he soon added his desire to exchange blows with him for no apparent reason. He wrote, “I respect Crawford and what he has reached but I want to kick his as* just cause. Let’s f*cking GO B*TCH.”

This post by the 24-1 record looks like one of the typical social media theatrics that he has adopted in the buildup to the Haney fight. Notably, the likes of Michael Jai White have condemned such behavior as they believe the lightweight boxer has a lot of work to do on his boxing game. “That does not go well in his favor because here’s a guy who needs to work on his fundamentals seriously,” White told DJ Vlad.

Despite the opinion-dividing tactics of Garcia, he has pursued big fights and names since he burst on the scene. He has fought Gervonta Davis but lost. Now, the Victorville native is fighting ‘The Dream’ next. In an age where fighters shield their records instead of fighting other big names, Oscar De La Hoya believes Garcia has done a great service to boxing.

Oscar De La Hoya praises ‘KingRy’ for his zeal to fight anyone

The Golden Boy Promotion lynchpin recently shed light on the recent condition of the boxing era and compared it to his era when everybody was willing to take on a fight with other big names. De La Hoya believes Garcia is bringing back the good old times. He told Beto Duran during a live broadcast, “He’s willing to fight the best.”

On the other hand, the recent post by Garcia appears merely to be an antic, but it also doesn’t deny the fact that he was the one who called out Haney and helped ink the deal. It remains to be seen how he will fair against his childhood rival and whether he will meet Crawford in the ring down the line.

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BOXING

Francis Ngannou’s next fight is finally agreed after the former UFC star’s brutal loss to Anthony Joshua

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Anthony Joshua

Francis Ngannou will reportedly return to action in September or October after agreeing his first fight since being beaten by Anthony Joshua.

The former UFC heavyweight champion was comprehensively beaten by Joshua last month in his second professional boxing fight.

He was sent to the canvas three times in Saudi Arabia as Joshua earned a knockout victory in two rounds.

Ngannou had raised expectations after sensationally knocking down WBC heavyweight world champion Tyson Fury before losing via a split decision verdict last October.

The Cameroonian is now expected to return to action in September or October, but is due to make his return in MMA.

Ngannou signed an ‘exclusive global MMA strategic partnership’ with the Professional Fighters League last May, but has yet to make his debut in promotion.

PFL boss Donn Davis has revealed Ngannou is due to fight Brazilian fighter Renan Ferreira in his debut later this year.

‘We talked to Francis and he said before the fight in Saudi Arabia that he planned to come in MMA this year,’ Davis told the Mirror.

‘It just depended on the outcome of that fight, he said if he lost that it’ll be sooner and if he won it would have been later, so it will be sooner.

‘He says he is recharging, he went home to Cameroon after the [Joshua] fight. We think it will be autumn, it could be as early as September or as later as October.

‘I think it will be one of those two but he will be ready.

‘It’ll be a little over two years since we’ve seen Francis in MMA and we are excited to see him in the SmartCage against Renan Ferreira.’

Ferreira set up the fight after beating Ryan Bader’s on the PFL Champions vs Bellator Champions card in February.

PFL champion Ferreira comes into the bout with a record of 13 wins and three losses.

Ngannou will take part in PFL’s Super-fight division, which allows fighters to earn at least 50 per cent of the pay-per-view revenue.

He had left the UFC last January despite reportedly turning down an offer that would have made him the highest-paid heavyweight of all time.

The fighter was released by the organisation and stripped of his heavyweight belt after taking the decision not to renew his contract with the promotion.

Despite his loss to Joshua and his upcoming mixed martial arts return, Ngannou has previously stressed he is not finished with boxing.

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Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua: Wembley to host ‘Battle of Britain’ heavyweight clash

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Tyson Fury

Wembley Stadium looks set to host the all-British heavyweight clash between Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua.

The long-awaited bout looks set to go ahead if Fury wins against Oleksandr Usyk on May 18 in Riyadh.

And Fury’s co-promoter Bob Arum is confident that London rather than Saudi Arabia will play host to the super fight.

He said: “The Saudis also, with having all this money, who can dictate the place, are very intelligent and they would, I think, like nothing more than to do that fight in Wembley with 95,000 people where they were the promoters.

“I think that would do more for their image than doing that fight – Fury and Joshua – in Saudi. But that’s up to them. That’s what I feel in talking to them briefly about the future.”

Joshua still might have a wait to finally fight Fury with the latter potentially facing a double header against his Ukrainian opponent.

“Looking at Tyson Fury, if he beats Usyk and fights Usyk again and beats him and then does a massive fight hopefully in the UK at Wembley Stadium,” he told Sky Sports, “that would really put an exclamation point to his great career.

“But let’s not put the cart before the horse. May 18 is an awfully competitive, really competitive heavyweight championship fight for all the marbles. He will give Tyson Fury everything Tyson can handle.

“I really believe from the reports I get that Tyson has really buckled down and is training very, very hard for this.”

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BOXING

After Gervonta Davis, His Opponent Frank Martin Unveils Ripped Physique for the Toughest Fight of His Career

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Frank Martin

The fight between Gervonta Davis and Frank Martin seems close to becoming real! Earlier this month, the Baltimore native seemingly confirmed the fight would transpire on June 22. However, what got people even more excited was his new, shredded physique. The undefeated boxer turned to X, sharing a clip of himself after a grueling workout, flaunting his physique. So, his upcoming opponent, Martin, did the same!

Earlier today, ‘The Ghost’ Martin took to his Instagram story to share a clip showcasing his ripped physique from his gym. The clip was later picked up by Boxing Media, who posted the clip on the social media platform. They captioned the post, “Frank Martin looking ripped leading up to his bout against Gervonta.”

As of the time of writing, the fight has not been officially confirmed, but both fighters have hinted at ongoing talks. If the fight gets made, it could possibly transpire at the rumored Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.

Davis (29-0) hasn’t fought since his seventh-round knockout victory over Ryan Garcia in April last year. Due to his legal troubles, which saw him in house arrest, the WBA lightweight champion had to stay out of the ring for over a year. Meanwhile, even Martin (18-0) didn’t see much action in 2023! While Davis fought Ryan Garcia and Hector Garcia last year, Martin only fought once against Artem Harutyunyan

The lightweight eliminator fight saw a close encounter, with Martin taking home the win after twelve rounds of battle. So, the question is — is Frank Martin ready for Gervonta Davis? As far as Martin is concerned, he has already left a mark on ‘Tank’ Davis in their previous encounter.

Gervonta Davis’ deleted warning to Frank Martin

Amid all the speculations about the fight between Martin and Davis, the former appeared in an interview with Naji in Cigar Talk. While there, Naji probed Martin about his previous sparring session with Davis, where Martin allegedly got hurt. So, Martin clarified that nothing of the sort happened when they sparred with each other.

Martin revealed that it was actually him who hurt Gervonta Davis during the sparring session. So, when Davis got wind of Martin’s bold claims during the interview, he hopped on X to set the record straight. In a now-deleted tweet, Davis wrote, “Keep talking… Ima upload the video.” Moreover, even though Martin suggested the sparring footage does exist, it hasn’t been made public yet.

By the looks of things, the fight between Gervonta Davis and Frank Martin seems all but confirmed. However, there’s always the possibility of things going south. So, only time will tell whether Davis returns to the ring in June or if his hiatus extends further. Who do you think would win? Does Martin stand a chance?

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Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk – Usyk’s manager thinks he knows Fury’s biggest weakness

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Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury
The pair clash next month.

Alexander Krassyuk is fully confident Oleksandr Usyk beats Tyson Fury next month, and he’s even identified a major weakness of the WBC champion.

The pair will clash on May 18 and all four heavyweight titles will be up for grabs with the winner becoming undisputed champion.

In Fury’s last outing, he struggled badly against Francis Ngannou as he was dropped early in the fight before winning on points.

Usyk was in action last August when he retained his belts with a stoppage over Daniel Dubois, and he’s heading into this battle with his manager full of belief.

“The worst thing about Tyson Fury is that he doesn’t know how to deal with a southpaw,” said Krassyuk when speaking to ProBox TV.

“That is the worst thing about him fighting Usyk (a southpaw); he doesn’t know the concept.

“He doesn’t know when to step in and out of his attacks. Just a normal technical mistake, he has done it a lot.”

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