Promoter Eddie Hearn dismisses the rumors of Tyson Fury intentionally suffering a cut to get out of his February 17th fight against undefeated heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk in Saudi Arabia.
Hearn insists the fight between Fury and Usyk (21-0, 14 KOs) will be rescheduled, but he’s not sure when. The reports say Fury may need three months at the minimum for his right eye injury to cut.
Many fans on social media believe the 35-year-old WBC champion Fury (34-0-1, 24 KOs) had someone in his team cut him because he was having a terrible camp, getting dropped by left and right in sparring, even by a cruiserweight.
Although Fury appears in outstanding shape, having the weight that he’d carried for for his last fight against Francis Ngannou, the rumors persist that he’d been dropped twice by former IBF cruiserweight champion Jai Opetaia and by other sparring partners.
Hearn Dismisses Conspiracy Theories
“To have a conspiracy theory, you have to believe Tyson Fury allowed someone to cut him open with a knife above his eye when he sparred and trained for seven weeks and is making an absolute fortune championship. No,” said Eddie Hearn to the media, rejecting the possibility that Fury intentionally suffered an injury today to duck his risky fight against unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk on February 17th.
Details of the Injury
“This, unfortunately, is a freak accident, a bad cut. You see him wearing an open headguard, which he’s always done. He’s also never got cut like that in sparring. It’s just terrible luck for him, Usyk, and Saudi Arabia boxing.
“As you get on and go deep in your career and have cuts, you might be more susceptible to them. It looks more like a freak elbow, an injury. I would think they’re absolutely devastated,” said Hearn when asked how the Saudis are taking the news of Fury’s cut.
Saudis Disappointed, Reschedule Expected
“It was such a massive event for Riyadh season, a massive event for world boxing. The event His Excellency put in. Look at the promo that was cut the other day. The fight is still going to happen, in my opinion, but everyone is going to be disappointed.
“Unfortunately for them, it’s their first taste of. It’s not the bad side of boxing because it’s just life,” said Hearn.
