Boxing will get arguably its best undisputed world championship fight on July 29 when unified welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr. clashes with WBO titleholder Terence Crawford.
The sweet science could have had another undisputed world championship clash if negotiations between unified world heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk and WBC and lineal champion Tyson Fury didn’t fall through. Instead, it will get Fury taking on former UFC heavyweight champion, Francis Ngannou, on October 28.
When the latter bout was broached during a virtual press conference session on Wednesday, Spence more than understood it being made. “The Truth” sees the Fury vs. Ngannou fight as a money grab for both.
“It’s an individual thing,” Spence told DAZN amongst a pool of reporters during his virtual session.
“It’s definitely fattening his pockets and Francis’ pockets, too. I feel it’s more of a money play than anything. It’s like Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor. It’s more of a money play.”
Mayweather and McGregor were able to turn their August 2017 clash into one of the highest-grossing boxing bouts of all time in a fight that saw “Money” carry the MMA fighter before drowning him out via a 10-round TKO. How the Fury-Ngannou bout fares in revenue remains to be seen.
Whether fans believe Fury vs. Ngannou does more to help or hurt boxing, Spence added a dose of reality by saying that both sides ironed out the details enough for it to happen.
“Hey, kudos to them for getting the fight done,” Spence said.
“The belts, the people who make a lot of the rules, sanctioned it — the WBC — they’re fighting each other, so, hey.”
Spence is right, considering the WBC granted Fury “special permission” to have the fight against Ngannou.
That being said, just because Spence sees the fight as a money haul, doesn’t mean his peers in boxing like it.
Anthony Joshua called the Fury-Ngannou fight “nonsense,” adding that the WBC and lineal champion should be fighting for the undisputed crown.
Egis Klimas, manager of Usyk, called the Fury-Ngannou clash “the biggest joke ever in boxing” upon hearing Tuesday’s fight announcement.