As fight fans have no doubt read or heard, the rematch for the heavyweight championship of the world between Tyson Fury and Wladimir Klitschko, is finally on. This fight, one that looked for a time as though it would never see the light of day – what with Fury declaring he might quit the sport, his subsequent leg injury, alleged failed drugs tests and Wladimir’s statement of intent as far as taking Fury to court – will go ahead, as planned, in Manchester on October 29th. Whew!
The massive fight has been dubbed “Repeat or Revenge,” but a better, more appropriate tag might have been, “Finally!” But tag-lines aside, this fight is one all fans want to see. Not because the first fight, won via decision by Fury, was a great fight, but because so may people just cannot decide whether Fury got “lucky” and had a great night at the expense of a rare bad night on the part of Klitschko. Fans want to know, is the controversial, the entertaining, the wholly unpredictable Fury the real deal or not?
The rematch will get us a lot closer to getting our answer – and if Fury can repeat last year’s win in his maiden defence, massive fights with the likes of Deontay Wilder and Anthony Joshua will be tantalisingly close to coming to fruition. However, if Klitschko wins, we really do not know what will happen to the world heavyweight title. Would a victorious Klitschko, who turns 41 five months after the date of rematch, decide to retire? Would Fury retire if he lost next month? Or maybe we would see a rubber-match between these two.
The bookmakers cannot separate Fury and Klitschko, with Ladbrokes currently having the 28-year-old unbeaten champ listed as a 10/11 shot, and ex-champ Klitschko being listed also as a 10/11 chance. The draw (not an altogether impossible result if this one goes, as most expect, to points) is listed at 25/1.
Klitschko has vowed to “remedy my mistake on October 29.” While Fury, so far, has been low-key on Twitter, stating simply how grateful he is to all those who put in the hard work to get the return fight on. “It’s been hard,” Fury wrote.
Rest assured, though – there will be plenty more fun and games from the Fury we all know so well in the run-up to October 29. Can Klitschko stand another press conference with the unpredictable champion? Let’s just hope, that after all the waiting, the rematch proves worth waiting for – and worth watching.
