Wilder-Fury Yields Not Another Rematch, but a Path to a Unified Title

One key takeaway from the bout: Big fights between big fighters are still big business.

The announced attendance of 15,820 did not fill T-Mobile Arena to its capacity, but it also did not include Fury’s numerous fans, many of whom are based in England and were unable to travel to Las Vegas because of travel restrictions related to the pandemic. Promoters still expected the fight card to generate more than $10 million in ticket revenue. Fury and Wilder’s previous bout sold $17 million in tickets.

“I want to apologize to all the fans who spent their money to see such a boring fight,” Bob Arum, the event’s co-promoter, joked at the news conference.

Then Arum, who runs Top Rank, turned serious.

“I have never seen a heavyweight fight as magnificent as this,” he said.

Another outcome: more progress toward a unified heavyweight title.

With a fourth Fury-Wilder fight off the table, Fury can target the winner of the rematch between Anthony Joshua and Oleksandr Usyk, the surprise winner of their bout late last month. In theory, within 12 months, the heavyweight division could have a single champion.

Wilder, for his part, could regroup and take some tuneup fights, or he could make big-money matches in the aftermath of the Joshua-Usyk-Fury round-robin. The main point, for Fury, Wilder and fans, is that options abound for entertaining, high-stakes fights.

“Boxing is big, and boxing is back,” Javan Hill, Fury’s trainer, said at the news conference. “The heavyweight division is flourishing.”