The biggest star in world heavyweight boxing all 2,05m of him is finally in the fight capital of the world. Unbeaten lineal heavyweight champion Tyson Fury, the self-proclaimed “Gypsy King,” defends his title against top contender Tom Schwarz on Sunday morning (live SS2, from 2am) at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
The fight marks the first in a multi-fight agreement announced in February, in which Fury’s fights are co-promoted by Top Rank and Frank Warren’s Queensberry Promotions.
“Tyson will be facing a tough, experienced and undefeated fighter in Tom Schwarz, who is coming to Las Vegas ready to shock the world,” said promoter Bob Arum.
Fury said” “I’m absolutely delighted to be boxing in Las Vegas. I always said I will never go to Vegas until I box there and now I finally am. I can’t wait to put on a boxing master class for all my fans. The British and Irish fans will invade Vegas. I can’t wait!”
The fight marks the first in a multi-fight agreement announced in February, in which Fury’s fights are co-promoted by Top Rank and Frank Warren’s Queensberry Promotions.
“Tyson will be facing a tough, experienced and undefeated fighter in Tom Schwarz, who is coming to Las Vegas ready to shock the world,” said promoter Bob Arum.
Fury said” “I’m absolutely delighted to be boxing in Las Vegas. I always said I will never go to Vegas until I box there and now I finally am. I can’t wait to put on a boxing master class for all my fans. The British and Irish fans will invade Vegas. I can’t wait!”
Schwarz said: “This is what I’ve been working for since I was a kid. A fight in Las Vegas against Tyson Fury is a dream come true. While I appreciate Tyson as a great fighter and a sportsman, I am young, ambitious and in the top of the world rankings. I‘ve won 24 fights, I’ve got nothing to lose, and my 25th victory will come against Fury.”
Fury (27-0-1, 19 KOs) captured the lineal heavyweight title on November 28, 2015, with a unanimous decision over long-time champion Wladimir Klitschko. That win catapulted him to worldwide celebrity, but a host of personal demons threatened to end his career before he could defend his title.
He blew up to 170kg, only to author a 2018 comeback that ranks among the greatest redemption stories in sporting history. In the third fight of his comeback, last December in Los Angeles, Fury fought WBC champion Deontay Wilder to a disputed draw. His recovery from a hellacious 12th-round knockdown became an instant viral video sensation and the stuff of boxing legend.
Schwarz (24-0, 16 KOs) is a 24-year-old native of Halle, Germany, a tall boxer-puncher who has not gone the distance in his past six fights.
Ranked No 2 by the WBO and ninth by the IBF, Schwarz has fought all but two of his bouts in Germany but has climbed the world heavyweight rankings with a string of dominant performances. He captured the WBO Intercontinental belt in April 2017 with a second-round stoppage of Adnan Redzovic (18-1 at the time) and has since defended that belt four times. In his last bout, in March he knocked down Kristijan Krstacic three times in the second round to score the stoppage.
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