Boxing
Sergio Mora picks Tyson Fury over Anthony Joshua as the best heavyweight in the world
The heavyweight division in boxing hasn't been this relevant since the 1990s. Leading the way is WBC and lineal champion Tyson Fury, unified champion Anthony Joshua and former titleholders Deontay Wilder and Andy Ruiz Jr.
After Fury dismantled Wilder by seventh-round TKO in their February rematch to capture the WBC crown and Joshua dominated Ruiz to win a lopsided decision, the question now is: Who is the best heavyweight on the planet, Fury or Joshua?
DAZN Boxing analyst Sergio Mora, who has called Joshua's last three bouts, against Alexander Povetkin and the two fights vs. Ruiz, currently views "The Gypsy King" as the class of the division.
"It's Tyson Fury," Mora said to DAZN News. "It has to be Tyson Fury. Not only because he's undefeated, but the way he was able to beat Deontay Wilder that second time. He was able to back up the big strong power puncher in Wilder, who no one thought he was gonna be able to do. He was the only one that believed in himself. So he says, 'I'm going to go out there, and I'm going to knock him out.' He said he would be able to do it in three rounds but he was still able to do it. I didn't think he had that in him.
"He's a slick boxer. He outboxed him the first time. He made a career outboxing fighters. I thought that's what he was going do with Wilder, and no, he backed him up and knocked him out. He made me a believer. Not only because he's undefeated, but it's also the way he beat Wilder and the way he beat him the second time. That hands down it has to be Tyson Fury."
Before COVID-19 rocked the entire world and shut down boxing, Fury was to meet Wilder in a trilogy bout on July 18. The fight was postponed, and it's unknown when it will occur. Joshua is scheduled to defend his belts against Kubrat Pulev on June 20, but the global pandemic threatens to postpone that fight as well.
If those fights eventually do take place and Fury and Joshua both emerge victorious, a fight between them to determine an undisputed champion would perhaps be the biggest fight in the history of British boxing. When it comes down to picking who'd walk out of the ring with all four belts, the former WBC junior middleweight titlist says he gives the edge to Fury.
"Right now, I give the edge to Fury just because of the momentum he's carrying," Mora explained. "Momentum (in boxing) means a lot. Both of them have momentum going forward. We still have to appreciate what Tyson Fury did. He knocked out the biggest knockout puncher in boxing. That right there gives you a sense of 'I'm the greatest in the world,' especially in the most coveted division in boxing, the heavyweight division.
"I just think Tyson Fury has the momentum, the confidence, and everything going for him. I would have to say that he beats 'AJ' if they fight this year. I think Tyson Fury has too much going for him. Joshua would have to fight a perfect fight to beat Fury. But what's the perfect fight? Backing Fury up or backing up himself? I don't know the question to answer that. He proved he can be an aggressor. He proved he can be a boxer. He's at the top of the world confidence-wise."
