by Johnny Walker
Peter Fury, the uncle and trainer of rising Anglo-Irish heavyweight giant Tyson Fury, has blasted what he says are the numerous fighters who are avoiding his charge.
Tyson Fury has made it known that he wants to move up from the journeyman-level opponents such as Vinny Maddalone and Martin Rogan to take on the divisions bigger names. But according to his trainer, that has been no easy task to arrange.
Fury had settled on undefeated Russian knockout artist Denis Boytsov for his next fight on December 1 in Belfast, but the Germany-based fighter had second thoughts and pulled out. And according to Peter Fury, that is far from the whole story.
Fury says that American Tor Hamer, who recently won the British “Prizefighter” competition, was offered the December 1 slot that as of now has gone to the man he defeated, Kevin “Kingpin” Johnson.
“It’s true that Tor Hamer was offered the fight, but obviously he turned it down,” Peter Fury tells World Boxing News.
According to the trainer, an offer to fight American giant Michael Grant was also accepted by the Fury camp, only to have Grant back out.
Germany’s Alexander Dimitrenko and American Eddie Chambers are also said to have taken a pass on a fight with Fury.
That leaves Johnson, who earlier this year partially atoned for an embarrassing 2009 outing against WBC heavyweight champion Vitali Klitschko by stopping rising Australian power puncher Alex Leapai in the land Down Under.
Johnson and Fury are both vociferous, motor-mouthed characters, which should make the abbreviated build-up to this bout highly entertaining.
“Some people are now slating Johnson, but he has been offering Seth Mitchell and Deontay Wilder out for a year and they are avoiding him,” Peter Fury says.
“This needs to be said and Tyson should get credit for the opponents he wants to fight.”
