Tony Bellew believes the pressure is all on Tommy Fury when he fights Jake Paul later this month.
The undefeated pair are taking on what is certainly the Briton’s highest profile fight, while for the American it could be his best paid pay-per-view event, being held in Saudi Arabia at the end of the month.
Paul has only fought one professional fighter, Anderson Silva, but the Brazilian made his name in mixed martial arts and is well past his prime.
Fury, Tyson Fury’s brother, is yet to record a serious name on his resume and failed to make weight in his last outing in Dubai.
Speaking on The DAZN Boxing Show, Bellew is largely unimpressed by their efforts so far, but does not begrudge them making the most of their opportunity.
“One guy fought journeymen and the other guy hasn’t fought a boxer yet,” he began.
“Here’s the craziest part of it: the guy who’s only fought YouTubers has the best name on his record. Anderson Silva is better than anyone that Tommy Fury has beaten so that’s insane, because Anderson Silva has a win over Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., and he’s a former world middleweight champion who beat some decent fighters in his day.
“Fair play, when Tommy Fury took his top off, I thought he’s in decent shape, but the carry-on was a little bit nuts but good luck to them both, have a crack at it, they’ve absolutely smashed it.
“My kids love it, it is what it is. They’re not ruining boxing, they’re creating their own little game. This is a professional boxing match, with a world title as chief support. Good luck to them, and I hope they put on a decent spectacle and it doesn’t end in 20 seconds. I’d like to see it live up.
“He’s a good athlete, he’s a former wrestler, if you can wrestle, you can have a fight, and wrestling is the most important thing when it comes to mixed martial arts. He still panics massively when going back, there’s a few fundamental flaws there. But he’s getting in there and having a go. Tommy isn’t a great prospect, he’s not going to win a British title, so he’s cashing in. Good on him. This isn’t about two guys going on to become world champion.
“There’s one guy going into this with nothing to lose, and his surname isn’t Fury. His own brother said, ‘Do not come home if you lose.’”