By: Hans Themistode
Tyson Fury, at least according to most, is considered the best heavyweight in the world.
That said, at the age of 33, Fury is much closer to the end of his boxing journey, rather than the beginning. Although promoter Bob Arum is thoroughly enjoying his time promoting his heavyweight fights, he believes Jared Anderson is primed and ready to replace him when Fury decides to walk away.
“Yes, that’s what I really believe he will be,” said Arum to Sky Sports. ”When Fury hangs up the gloves, Jared will be in pole position to become the next great heavyweight.”
So far, the 22-year-old Anderson continues to impress. In 2021, in particular, the highly-rated prospect had an extremely robust schedule. Following four stoppage victories, Anderson received high praise from Fury himself. The current WBC heavyweight titlist tabbed Anderson as a future world champion following his second-round knockout win over Oleksandr Teslenko.
While Fury continues to sing his praises, Arum has taken his admiration for Anderson to a whole other level.
“Mike Tyson was a tremendous puncher who didn’t show much boxing ability. Jared has shown boxing ability and power. He reminds me of a young Muhammad Ali.”
To further his belief in Anderson, Arum is interested in matching him tough. With Fury officially closing the door on his rivalry against former champion Deontay Wilder, Arum is now angling to spark the competitive fire between Wilder and Anderson.
Prior to his three-part fight series against Fury, Wilder viciously halted every heavyweight he stepped into the ring against. Even with his record now sullied by Fury, Arum still considers him a terrific fighter with a one-of-a-kind punch. Still, regardless of the superlative words Arum uses to describe Wilder, the long-time promoter believes that by the tail of the year, Anderson will be ready to face him.
“Wilder is a terrific talent. He hits like a mule, as Tyson would attest to. Pretty much anybody in the heavyweight division would lose to Wilder. The one guy who will be equipped to beat him, by the end of this year, is Anderson. I would be prepared to discuss a potential Wilder vs. Anderson fight by the end of this year. We are grooming him to be the next heavyweight champion after Fury.”