Eddie Hearn Issues Tyson Fury a Challenge to Prove His ‘Elite’ Boxer Status

With each passing day, the debate around the fight between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk is intensifying. While boxing enthusiasts have picked their favorites for the historic fight already, a new discourse has ensued. This time it’s about ascertaining if ‘The Gypsy King’ is an elite fighter. While promoter and writer Barry McGuigan, in his recent article in The Mirror, started this entire argument, Eddie Hearn seems to have ended it, while issuing a way Fury can prove his worth in the boxing game.

For Fury alone, his May 18 fight is a moment of truth. He not only competes for the undisputed title, that has been not held since 1999, but he also needs to prove himself after his last fight against Francis Ngannou. After all, he had a close call against a newbie boxer. While those criticisms caught up to his reputation as a world champion, McGuigan took the word ahead by denying his status as an elite fighter. Will he be able to overturn the Irish promoter and writer’s harsh criticisms?

Eddie Hearn sides with Tyson Fury, but There’s a Catch

In his conversation with Pro Boxing Fans, the British promoter was asked if he agreed with what Barry McGuigan wrote in his opinion piece for The Mirror. He had argued, “Usyk has no need to go looking for inspiration after Fury’s claim that he is not big enough to beat an elite heavyweight. Usyk is arguably wondering which elite heavyweight Fury is talking about.” These sentences got people thinking if Fury stands worth the fame he enjoys.

While he made no direct comment on McGuigan’s opinion, Hearn, however, saw the English fighter as an elite heavyweight. He explained, “I have said this in the past. I do think three Wilder wins I know one was a draw, but he really won the fight. I mean, were impressive. The Klitschko win was amazing, but beyond that I always said that AJ’s got a better resume.”

However, for his upcoming undisputed clash against ‘The Cat’, if Tyson Fury manages to win, Hearn thinks that he will be not only considered an elite fighter of his generation but also the best of this era. He declared, “Listen he’s fighting on May 18 for the undisputed. If he wins that fight, he’s the best of the generation.” 

McGuigan’s comments came after Fury had a lot to say about Usyk not being on the same level as him going into their upcoming clash.

Oleksandr Usyk is too small?

In his interview with BBC, the 35-year-old fighter noted that Usyk will be “found wanting” on fight night. He explained, “You can beat the average big ones but you can’t beat the elite big ones. Size is what really matters and we have weight divisions for a reason.”

Usyk last fought Daniel Dubois last year, in which he exerted his complete dominance. However, Fury hardly gives any credit to the heavyweight for it, underlining that Daniel Dubois had “limited ability”. “If Tyson Fury can’t beat Usyk, Tyson’s no good. End of,” he declared.

Do you think Tyson Fury is an elite fighter? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.