Tyson Fury’s co-promoter Frank Warren has cautioned against getting too excited about a potential rematch between his fighter and Oleksandr Usyk.
Fury 34-1-1 (24) suffered his first professional defeat when Usyk 22-0 (14) dropped him in the ninth-round and finished the fight strongly to claim a split decision win by scores of 114-113, 113-114 and 115-112 at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Saturday night.
With the victory Ukrainian southpaw Usyk, 37, add the WBC heavyweight strap to his WBA, WBO, IBF and Ring Magazine championships to become the first undisputed champ in the open weight class since Lennox Lewis a quarter of a century ago.
There is a rematch clause in the boxers’ contract and while Britain’s Fury, 35, flagged a second fight with Usyk in October in the ring immediately after their fight, promoter Warren says it will ultimately be up to the mercurial Fury to decide what he wants to do.
“We are committed because there’s a contract signed. However, Tyson’s got to want to do it and Usyk has got to want to do it,” the Queensberry Promotions chief told Seconds Out.
“If one of them says ‘I’ve had enough’ that could be the case. And that would be their choice.
“They’re two guys who gave everything in that ring, both of them.”
A retirement announcement would, of course, render the rematch clause null and void.
“Well he can, he’s the champion, he can say he’s retiring,” Warren said of Usyk. “I’m not saying he would, but he has that option, doesn’t he?”
Warren recommended Fury to take some time off to relax with his family before making a final decision about his career.
“He did immediately say [he’d take the rematch] in the ring,” Warren said. “But I told him he’s been away from his family since last December, two back-to-back training camps, no fight in between, it’s a long time to be away from his family.
“We don’t have to make any decisions about anything. It’s contracted and if he wants to go through with it, he’ll go through with it.
“But who is anybody to pressure Tyson on what he should be doing? That’s his choice. He’s the guy getting in the ring, he’s the guy who’s taking the lumps and that’s how it is.”
The other option for Fury would be to bypass the Usyk rematch and make the long overdue fight with countryman Anthony Joshua 28-3 (25).
“Of course there’s big fights out there, there’s no doubt about that because he comes to fight, he’s a great fighter and this was his first defeat,” said Warren.
“But it will be his choice. When I speak to him about it, I’m not even going to try and influence him.
“At the end of the day with Tyson, he will either want to fight or he doesn’t want to fight. What I said to him is, ‘If you’re going to retire, don’t retire and then say you want to come back in a month’s time’, which he does sometimes. Which he’s done a couple of times.
“So it’s better to just think it through. There’s no pressure, zero pressure for this.”
