Tyson Fury withdraws from heavyweight world title rematch with Wladimir Klitschko after suffering ankle injury during training

 Peter Fury also tweeted this picture showing Tyson’s bruised ankle, suffered during training 

• Tyson Fury has postponed his heavyweight world title rematch with Wladimir Klitschko scheduled for July 9 at the Manchester Arena
• Defending champion has sprained his ankle during training in Lake District
• Fury made the announcement via a short video on his Instagram account
• His trainer Peter Fury posted pictures of his bruised and swollen ankle
• Fury stunned Klitschko when he won on points in Dusseldorf in November 

Forests of quizzical eyebrows were raised when Tyson Fury pulled out of his world heavyweight title rematch with Wladimir Klitschko but his TV paymaster Frank Warren has confirmed the ankle injury is genuine and the fight will be rescheduled.

Suspicions initially ran deepest in the Austrian Tyrol where Klitschko has been training intensively for his bid to regain the championship belts which Manchester’s Gipsy King prised from him in a huge upset in Germany.

However, the man who dominated the heavyweight division for a decade has accepted the delay, saying: ‘Of course I am currently totally disappointed. I also feel sorry for my fans who were very excited. But this just means I’ll get my belts back a few weeks later.’

 Photo by Getty Images / Tyson Fury has withdrawn from his world heavyweight championship rematch with Wladmir Klitschko

 Fury’s trainer, Peter, posted a Twitter image of his bruised and swollen ankle

The new working date is October 29, again at the Manchester Arena.

Warren, despite his own disappointment at a cancellation so close to the fight date of July 9, reports that Fury has no option but to withdraw.

As Fury posted pictures of his bruised and swollen ankle on his Instagram site, Warren, head of the BoxNation subscription channel, said: ‘There is no way Tyson could have boxed in the next couple of weeks. He went over on the ankle while running. We’re all gutted this has happened. It has cost us a fortune but we will get it back on.’

Fury had ballooned up to more than three stones over his fighting weight before going into training and there have been reports that he broke camp briefly to attend a rave in Anglesea. Then he posed for selfies with fans in a pub there on Monday as he watched England’s European Championship match against Slovakia.

However, Fury, who was in prime condition at his training camp in Holland two weeks ago, told his supporters: ‘I got a little bad news for you all. Almost 10 days ago I was running in the Lake District and I went over and sprained my ankle. Been to hospital. Had X-rays and MRI scans.

 Photo:  Kevin Quigley / Fury and Klitschko pictured at a press conference in Manchester to promote the upcoming fight

 Photo:  Kevin Quigley / Fury goaded his opponent by removing his shirt and saying ‘you lost to a fat man’

 Photo:  Getty Images / Fury connects with his left hand during his win over Klitschko in Dusseldorf, Germany in November

‘Not broken but I was told to keep off it for six to seven weeks. Tried to train a bit but a second opinion was the same. So sorry to let all my fans down and apologies to everyone who’s booked the date.’

The postponement will not be helpful to Klitschko, given the strain of perfecting preparations at the age of 40.

But Fury’s promoter Mick Hennessy says: ‘There is no way we could let Tyson fight a man like Klitschko when anything less than 100 per cent fit. And we will rearrange the fight.’

There had also been rumours that tickets were not going well but Warren reports: ‘We had sold more than 17,000, which left only a couple of thousand remaining.’

Tickets already purchased will be honoured in October.

  Photo:  Getty Images / The Ukrainian was left stunned after Fury won their first fight on a unanimous points decision

 Klitschko had said earlier this week that Fury reminds him of Hitler due to his comments on Jewish people

 Normally mild-mannered, Klitschko’s Hitler comparison was out of the ordinary and has clearly offended Fury

Klitschko’s manager, Bernd Boente, says: ‘This is unfortunate. Wladimir was in great form. But we will be ready to go to Manchester on the new date.’

Earlier in the day, Fury responded angrily to Klitschko likening him to Adolf Hitler. Klitschko made that stark comparison after reading Fury’s views on Jewish people.

As a member of the travelling community, Fury responded: ‘You recently said I’m like Hitler. Wladimir has no education in the matter. He does not realise Hitler killed hundreds of thousands of gypsies, if not millions.

‘A lot of my ancestors were mass-murdered by Hitler. To call me that is a very, very bad insult, friend. Let’s not forget that your people the Ukrainians were the guards in the death camps where my people were slaughtered. You stupid f****** Ukrainian p****.’

There was much hype and mutual promotional baiting before the November fight in Dusseldorf.

Now the bad blood is for real.

Fury v Klitschko will be televised live on BoxNation, most likely on Saturday, October 29. 

 Photo:  Getty Images / Tyson Fury’s war of words with Wladimir Klitschko has continued ahead of their world heavyweight title bout
                                                 Fury has hit out at Klitschko once again on Instagram, describing him as a ‘stupid f****** Ukrainian p****’

www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/boxing/article-3658488/Tyson-Fury-withdraws-heavyweight-rematch-Vladimir-Klitschko-suffering-ankle-injury-training.html

  By:  Dan Rafael –

Heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko, one of boxing history’s most dominant big men, will make a mandatory defense against Tyson Fury, a rare opponent bigger than him, on Oct. 24 at the Esprit Arena in Dusseldorf, Germany, after their camps made a last-minute deal and avoided a purse bid Monday.

With a purse bid scheduled for noon ET at the WBA headquarters in Panama City, Panama, Klitschko’s K2 Promotions and Fury promoter Mick Hennessy, who had been negotiating for weeks, reached an agreement with four minutes to spare.

Had the fight been put up for auction — Klitschko, as champion, was entitled to 80 percent of a winning bid and Fury 20 percent — they risked losing promotional control of the bout, as representatives for British promoters Eddie Hearn and Frank Warren as well as Russian promoter Vlad Hrunov himself showed up at the purse bid intending to put in offers for a fight that surely would have garnered a winning bid of at least $15 million.

“We had constant conference calls with each other and the lawyers, and then four minutes before the deadline we reached an agreement,” Klitschko manager Bernd Boente told ESPN.com. “I think a good deal is one where both sides are happy, and both sides are happy with this deal. Mick Hennessy and Tyson Fury are happy and Wladimir and our side are also happy.”

Boente was in Germany but said he was in constant contact with Hennessy as well as Tom Loeffler, managing director of Klitschko’s K2 Promotions, who was in Panama, as they finalized the agreement.

Klitschko will be returning to defend the title at Esprit Arena for the third time. In 2012, he pummeled former cruiserweight champion Jean Marc Mormeck in a fourth-round knockout, and in 2010 he dominated Eddie Chambers before scoring a crushing knockout with five seconds left in the 12th and final round.

Both fights drew massive crowds of more than 50,000 to the indoor soccer stadium, and this is a far more anticipated fight than either of those.

Terms of the Klitschko-Fury agreement were not disclosed, but the showdown looms as one of the most significant heavyweight title bouts in recent years given Klitschko’s enormous popularity in Germany as well as Fury’s following in England. Also, it is a bout that fans have looked forward to for the past few years.

“It is definitely a very big fight,” Boente said. “Tyson Fury is a top challenger without any doubt. It’s a tough fight, no doubt.”

The 6-foot-6, 245-pound Klitschko (64-3, 54 KOs), 39, who is from Ukraine and lives in South Florida, will be making the 19th title defense during his nine-year, second reign — second-longest in heavyweight history behind only Joe Louis, who held the title for more than 11 years.

Klitschko’s 18 consecutive successful title defenses are third most in heavyweight history behind Louis’ all-time record of 25 and Larry Holmes’ 20. Klitschko is coming off a one-sided decision victory against then-undefeated Bryant Jennings on April 25 at Madison Square Garden in New York.

With the win against Jennings, Klitschko moved to 25-2 overall in world title bouts. When he faces Fury, it will be the 28th world heavyweight title bout Klitschko will be participating in, which will break the all-time record of 27 that he and Louis share.

England’s 6-foot-9, 260-pound Fury, 26, who will be the sixth undefeated opponent Klitschko will be facing in his last seven title defenses, is known for his outlandish trash talk, which undoubtedly will help sell the fight.

But Fury (24-0, 18 KOs) has also earned his position as Klitschko’s mandatory challenger. He scored a 10th-round knockout of contender Dereck Chisora — his second win against him — in their November title elimination bout. Fury knocked out Christian Hammer in the eighth round on Feb. 28 to stay busy before the title shot.

“I promise I won’t do a David Haye and s— myself. I’ll KO this super champ. I don’t talk unless I can back it up,” said Fury, taking a shot at countryman David Haye, who trash-talked Klitschko relentlessly and then did virtually nothing in a one-sided decision loss he blamed on a sore little toe when they met in a 2011 title unification bout.

Boente said the bout will be televised on HBO in the United States and RTL in Germany — networks that have contracts with Klitschko. He said the television outlet in the United Kingdom was not settled. He said talks are ongoing with ITV, Sky Sports and BT.

“We are happy we found an agreement in the end,” Boente said. “There are always certain points and certain issues you have to deal with but the good thing is we reached an agreement and that’s what counts. Maybe it was good we had the pressure of the purse bid to reach an agreement.

“Mick Hennessy and myself both said why is it necessary to give other promoters a chance to outbid us and promote the fight when we could have a nice cooperation? I am confident we will work together very well. We all want this to be a megaevent. The fight inside the ring could be absolutely thrilling and we will make sure that there will be a sold-out arena and television viewers around the world for this great fight.”

http://espn.go.com/boxing/story/_/id/13209240/wladimir-klitschko-tyson-fury-set-october-title-fight-germany

By:  Patrick Byrne (HBO) –

New York City (February 4, 2015) Undisputed Heavyweight World Champion WLADIMIR KLITSCHKO will defend his 10-year title reign against top rated challenger BRYANT JENNINGS on Sat., April 25 emanating from the “The World’s Most Famous Arena”,Madison Square Garden and televised Live on HBO World Championship Boxing beginning at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT.

Said Klitschko about the highly anticipated battle, “I do have great respect for Bryant Jennings and his achievements. He has good movement in the ring and good technique. I know this will be a tough challenge.”

“I am extremely happy to fight in New York City again. I had my first unification fight there and a lot of great heavyweight matches have taken place at Madison Square Garden. It will definitely be a great fight night and I will do everything for it from my side.”

Stated undefeated contender Jennings, “This is the moment I have been waiting for,” now it’s time to bring the belts home.”

“For the fourth time Wladimir will be boxing in the world’s most famous arena.” said BERND BOENTE, CEO of the Klitschko Management Group. “It’s always something special to promote at Madison Square Garden, where legends such as Joe Louis, Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier, Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield stood inside the ring. We are looking forward to another exciting fight and a great event.”

Continued TOM LOEFFLER, Managing Director of K2 Promotions: “Wladimir has proven to be the most dominant heavyweight champion in recent history and we are looking forward to another great performance on April 25.”

“We’re proud to present Jennings with the opportunity to win the Unified Heavyweight Title of the World,” said GARY SHAW, head of Gary Shaw Productions

“On April 25th at Madison Square Garden, Wladimir Klitschko defends his heavyweight championship for the first time in the United States since 2008,” said Peter Nelson, vice president, programming, HBO Sports. “Heavyweight is boxing’s supreme glamour division, and its champion could not be a better ambassador to the sport in a career heading toward historic landmark achievements. Bryant Jennings has an opportunity to halt those ambitions and become America’s first unified heavyweight champion in more than 13 years, challenging for the crown in the media capital of the world. HBO is thrilled to present the event live on our flagship World Championship Boxing series.”

“It is an honor to host the World Heavyweight Championship at Madison Square Garden and welcome back Wladimir Klitschko, who last fought at The Garden in 2008,” said Joel Fisher, executive vice president, MSG Sports. “Throughout our 135 year existence, The Garden has hosted the very best in sports and entertainment, and to bring the World Heavyweight Championship back so our passionate boxing fans can see Bryant Jennings challenge for the heavyweight title is a moment not to be missed.”

Holder of the IBF/WBA/WBO/IBO and “The Ring Magazine” world titles and undefeated over the last ten years, Klitschko returns to Madison Square Garden for the fourth time sporting a record of 63-3-0 (54KO’s).

On November 15, Klitschko scored a fifth round knockout over #1 ranked contender Kubrat Pulev in Hamburg, Germany. Looking as dominant as ever during his illustrious career, Klitschko dropped the heavy handed Bulgarian four times in front of a sold out crowd at the 02 World Arena.

Returning to HBO® for his third straight fight, Philadelphia native Jennings has compiled a record of 19-0-0 (10KO’s) over his five-year professional career.

Making his HBO and Madison Square Garden debut on January 25, 2014, the 30-year-old Jennings devastatingly stopped undefeated Polish contender Artur Szpilka in the tenth and final round.

Following up on his knockout victory over Szpilka, Jennings won a 12-round unanimous decision over top contender Mike Perez on July 26, 2014 setting up the showdown with Klitschko.

http://www.boxeomundial.com/wladimir-klitschko-vs-bryant-jennings-saturday-april-25-live-hbo/

Heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko has suffered a torn left biceps, forcing him on Monday to postpone his mandatory defense against Kubrat Pulev that was scheduled for Sept. 6 at the O2 World arena in Hamburg, Germany.

Klitschko suffered the injury on Friday during a sparring session.

“He had problems on Friday, and he first thought it’s a minor thing, but he went to the hospital near the camp [in Austria], and there they detected this torn muscle,” Bernd Boente, Klitschko’s manager, told ESPN.com. “He was in top shape and he had perfect sparring partners. He did a long preparation and is sorry to have to postpone the fight.”

Said Klitschko in a statement: “I am very disappointed that the fight cannot take place as planned. I am in absolute top form and had a great training camp. Of course, I’m sorry for the fans, but also for my opponent Kubrat Pulev, who was certainly training as intensely as I do.”

Dr. Robert Siorpaes diagnosed the injury and recommended that Klitschko suspend training for about four weeks.

Boente said the fight will be rescheduled for November and likely still take place at the O2 World, which was already sold out — around 15,000 tickets — for the Sept. 6 fight.

“We hope to reschedule the bout in the same arena in mid-November, probably Nov. 15,” Boente said. “But that is something we have to discuss with the arena and RTL [the German television network that has a contract to carry Klitschko’s fights]. We also have to talk to the IBF because this fight is a mandatory.

“Of course, we are all disappointed, but these things can happen during the preparation.”

Klitschko (62-3, 53 KOs), 38, of Ukraine, is bidding for a 17th title defense. His 16 successful defenses during his second title reign are the third-most in heavyweight history behind those of only Joe Louis (25) and Larry Holmes (20), and his eight-year-plus reign is second all time to Louis’ record 11 years, 8 months, 8 days.

Klitschko, a 1996 Olympic gold medalist, moved to 23-2 overall in world title fights with a one-sided, fifth-round knockout of Australia’s Alex Leapai, a mandatory challenger, on April 26 in Oberhausen, Germany.

Pulev (20-0, 11 KOs), 33, of Bulgaria, a former European champion, earned his mandatory challenger status in August 2013 with a unanimous decision against American Tony Thompson, who had twice been knocked out by Klitschko in mandatory title fights.

Since becoming the mandatory challenger, Pulev, known as “The Cobra,” has fought twice. He scored a fourth-round knockout of Joey Abell, who knocked him down, in December, followed by a third-round knockout of Ivica Perkovic on April 5.

http://espn.go.com/boxing/story/_/id/11405849/wladimir-klitschko-torn-biceps-postpones-fight

By Luke Furman

A deal has been reached, and the contracts have been signed, for the batttle of Olympic gold medal winners. WBA/IBO/IBF/WBO heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko (60-3, 51KOs) will defend his titles against mandatory challenger Alexander Povetkin (26-0, 18KOs) on October 5th at Olimpiyskiy stadium. Both promoters confirmed the news in a press release. Promoter Vladimir Hryunov secured the promotional rights with a huge $23 million dollar bid at the purse bid.

Bernd Boente, manager of Klitschko, confirmed the news.

“I am grateful to our Russian partners – Andrew Ryabinsky and Vladimr Hryunov for their cooperation in the realization of this great battle. Despite the long and arduous negotiations, both sides had the desire and willingness to reach an agreement. And now we can work together to provide one of the best fights that can be made to boxing fans around the world. We have all been waiting for this meeting for a long time and finally we reached the finish line. This will be an incredible fight – the battle of two Olympic champions, two heavyweight champions, two great athletes,” Boente said.

For his part, Klitschko said:

“I am very pleased that the fight has been set. Boxing fans around the world eagerly await the meeting of two Olympians. This fight will be between the best in the heavyweight division and I am impressed by the fact that it will be held in Moscow, because many Russian and Ukrainian fans have the chance to attend the live event. The atmosphere will be an exciting event,” Wladimir said.

And Hyrunov closed with the following:

“Moscow will host a fantastic boxing match, which will be seen by millions of eyes and cheered by hearts of millions all over the world – there’s no doubt about it,” said Hryunov.

http://www.boxingscene.com/klitschko-povetkin-official-contracts-signed-10-5–67245