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Tyson Fury’s promoter, Bob Arum has declared that the world heavyweight champion will earn in excess of £100million for his fight with Oleksandr Usyk, breaking the heavyweight record.
The duo will compete for the undisputed world heavyweight title provided Fury gets through Francis Ngannou at the end of this month in Saudi Arabia. And the bout could take place as soon as December 23, although a January date is more likely given how close the two fights would be.
Fury is currently the WBC champion, while Usyk holds the WBA, WBO and IBF belts. In the four-belt era, there has never been an undisputed champion at heavyweight, with a number of big fights falling apart between the various champions since the reign of the Klitschko brothers ended.
“Tyson has to take care of business on October 28,” Arum told ESNews last week. “When he fights Ngannou, and then we’re off to the races with the unified heavyweight championship. If you told Tyson Fury he’s set to make $100m, he’d really get pissed off because he thinks, and I think he’s right, that he’s going to make a lot more. I don’t know the number, but it’s a lot more than $100m.”
And between the two Saudi Arabian fights, Arum estimates that he could end up pocketing $200m. That would mean he’s making more than any previous headliner in the Middle East, as well as any of the great heavyweights such as Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield in their primes.
“Fury, in that fight and the Ngannou fight, in the near future we are hoping that he comes in at around $200m,” Arum added, before noting that the rumoured date was “just a rumour”. “Until [the Saudis] announce the date, they’re putting up the money, that’s where the fight’s going to be and they will announce the date some time after the Ngannou fight.”
