Tony Thompson, the very man many fans feel either ruined, or at least severely affected, David Price’s once hugely promising pro career, has called Price out for a third fight. Thompson, who seemed to have decided on retirement after his heavy stoppage loss to Luis Ortiz back in March, told Sky Sports that he would “love to come back to the UK.”
And the 45-year-old who twice stopped Price in 2013 says that contrary to belief, he is no drugs cheat. Thompson failed his post-fight drugs tests after beating Price, yet he insists he did not take anything other than medication for high blood pressure.
“[Price] should be ashamed of himself, actually. To moan about a medication I was taking for high blood pressure? There was no athletic advantage,” Thompson told Sky Sports. “There’s no monkey on my back. But I want to whup him out of sheer principle for telling people that I only beat him because I cheated. Everybody saw my body in those first two fights – I have the worst body in the heavyweight division!”
Thompson says that until Price redeems himself with a revenge win over him, thus removing “the demon on his back,” the British giant will not be able to “do nothing with his career.” So, the chance at revenge is seemingly there for Price – who has won two low-level fights under new trainer Dave Coldwell since suffering his third stoppage loss, to Erkan Teper (who also failed a post-fight drugs test afterwards) – but does he want to take it?
Well, no, he doesn’t.
“No chance. Is he willing to forfeit his purse from last time to me as per UK Anti-Doping rule? Don’t think so. Fight someone else,” Price Tweeted in response to Thompson’s offer.
Price of course has a point, but some fight fans may think it odd he does not have the urge to try and smash Thompson in a third fight – as he would have a great chance of doing at this advanced stage in southpaw Thompson’s career (remember, in the second fight, Price scored a heavy knockdown and was a whisker away from getting a revenge win). A third fight, fought under strict BBB of Control rules, where Thompson would be strictly tested, might have given Price a huge boost as well as some enormous peace of mind.
But Price appears to have made his mind up. Who might it be next, then, for the Liverpool fighter?
