Klitschko-Fury Ordered, 60-Day Negotiation Begins May 5

By Jake Donovan

World heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko is all but confirmed to next face brash unbeaten challenger Tyson Fury. The fight has formally been ordered by the World Boxing Organization (WBO) and World Boxing Associations (WBA), with a 60-day negotiations period due to begin Tuesday, May 5.

In the event that an agreement cannot be reached between the two camps, the bout will then be subject to a purse bid hearing.

Klitschko (64-3, 53KOs) is coming off of a 12-round points win over unbeaten American contender Bryant Jennings on April 24 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The bout was Klitschko’s first stateside appearance in more than seven years.

The last such occurrence also took place at Madison Square Garden and against an undefeated fighter, when Klitschko outpointed Sultan Ibragimov over 12 rounds.

Eight of Klitschko’s 18 consecutive defenses at least one title over the past nine years have come versus unbeaten opposition. A fight with Fury would mark his third straight against such a challenger. Prior to his win over Jennings, the reigning heavyweight king handed Kubrat Pulev his first defeat in scoring a 5th round knockout last November.

The win over Pulev served as Klitschko’s mandatory defense of the International Boxing Federation (IBF) title. The new mandatory challenger for the IBF is Vyacheslav Glazkov, with the defense due by late August. It remains to be seen whether Klitschko will be forced to give up a belt, or if an exemption will be granted.

Fury (24-0, 18KOs) officially punched his way into title contention following a 10th round stoppage of Dereck Chisora in their well-publicized rematch last November. The two had previously met in 2011, with Fury winning a 12-round decision when both were unbeaten prospects but neither at their best.

The rematch was a different story, as Fury caught a version of Chisora riding a five-fight win streak and confidence at an all-time high. The career-best win was followed up by an 8th round stoppage of Christian Hammer in a stay-busy fight this past February.

Fury took the fight with Hammer while agreeing to step aside to allow Klitschko to face Jennings in a voluntary. The concession came with the understanding that he would be next in line, which Klitschko is willing to honor in acknowledging his mandatory obligations in post-fight remarks following his win over Jennings.

Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox