Tyson Fury Determined To Stay Center Of Attention At Joshua Vs Ngannou Event
On Friday night in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Anthony Joshua and Francis Ngannou take top billing at the ‘Knockout Chaos’ event in a fight between two powerful heavyweight champions.
Joshua, a two-time unified boxing world champion, takes on former UFC king Ngannou in what will be only the Cameroonian’s second professional bout. Joshua is, unsurprisingly, the heavy favorite to win, although the concussive power held by Ngannou should make this fight intriguing.
Considering the size and scale of this fight, you would expect all the attention to be on Joshua and Ngannou, plus the many fighters on the undercard – including WBO interim champion Zhilei Zhang and his opponent Joseph Parker – but there is one man in Riyadh who appears determined to be center of attention, even though he’s not fighting.
Tyson Fury landed in Saudi Arabia earlier in the week and has wasted little time trying to assert himself into the build-up of the event. There was the group photo with Joshua, Ngannou, soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo, and Turki Alshikh – the Chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Authority for Entertainment and the mastermind behind all the huge fights going to Riyadh.
There was his presence at the Joshua and Ngannou press conference, where he sat in the front row and exchanged words with Ngannou, whom Fury fought and narrowly beat in his last fight in October.
And, of course, the many interview opportunities Fury has taken with the media and various YouTube channels to promote himself and offer his thoughts on Friday night’s main event.
It prompts the question: what is Fury doing in Riyadh now and why is he so determined to be in the spotlight at an event he’s not fighting in? There few logical reasons…
Fury Is There To Offer Support
One obvious reason Fury can give for being in Saudi for ‘Knockout Chaos’ is simply to offer his support to a friend and family member who are fighting on the card. His brother Roman Fury contests a cruiserweight fight with Martin Svrac on the undercard, while close friend Parker faces WBO interim heavyweight champion Zhang in the co-main event.
Additionally, it’s not uncommon for fighters to sit ringside at major boxing events, particularly when potential rivals are involved. Joshua is certainly a long-time rival and the pair could finally share a ring in the near future if all the pieces fall into place. Ngannou, meanwhile, could be in line for a rematch with Fury if he is able to shock the world and beat Joshua.
Fury being in attendance to size up potential future opponents makes sense, but it still doesn’t explain his aggressive self-promotion – which brings us to the next reason…
To Promote His Fight With Usyk
Fury will be back in Saudi in an official capacity in May for the historic undisputed heavyweight championship fight with Oleksandr Usyk.
The bout has been twice postponed, first from December 23 after Fury was pushed unexpectedly close by Ngannou last October, and again from February 17 following Fury’s cut above his eye in sparring.
Despite the delays, it remains the biggest fight in boxing and will crown the first undisputed heavyweight champion of the four-belt era. By making his presence seen and heard at another massive boxing event – especially one at the same venue just two months before his own – Fury is no doubt taking the opportunity to promote himself and his fight with Usyk.
The more interest he can generate for his fight, the more tickets and pay-per-views will be sold, the more he can line his own pockets.
Fury has always tried to pass himself off as “just a fighting man” but he is a master self-promoter and marketer, and that is all evident from this week in Riyadh.
To Strengthen Relationships With The Saudis
It’s quite clear by now that the future of heavyweight boxing is in Saudi Arabia. Friday night will be the fourth time Joshua has fought in the country and the second time for Ngannou. When Fury returns on May 18 against Usyk, it will be the second time both champions have fought in Saudi.
With Alshikh wielding so much power and influence over the sport – while overseeing a bottomless pot of money – it’s smart business for Fury to be present at major boxing events in Riyadh. It allows him to strengthen his relationship with Alshikh and the other Saudis in positions of power to ensure he gets himself the best possible deals for his future fights.
Let’s not forget, there is a rematch clause for his bout with Usyk and those purses still need to be negotiated with the Saudis. The better his relationship with them, the more money he can request.
