How long will you consider Tyson Fury the number 1 heavyweight without fighting?

That's a good point. Anthony Joshua should be considered the number 1 heavyweight.

I consider him retired. At least he steps into the professional ring again.

... not really He's not the top heavy. Dude hasn't fought in almost 2 years. That's like Floyd coming back and saying after 2 years off that he should be rated the best in the world. You don't get it by default, you get it by staying relevant by getting in the ring and beating top competition. Floyd left as the clear-cut dominant top fighter in the sport, took off 20 months, and then returned to whitewash a fellow top-5 p4p fighter upon his immediate return. Floyd left the best in the world, and returned to the sport still the best in the world.

lol Tyson Fury edged Wladimir Klitschko in a dreadfully bland 7-5 fight, over 18 months ago, and lost his mind (Fury is currently in a place where there's blind optimism for him being near fight fit this summer, and not much else). The #1 heavyweight claim, as of now, is left open while the consolidation happens again. Joshua, Wilder, Fury, and Klitschko are all in that mix, so we'll see.

Lineal doesn't mean you're the best. Just the man who beat the man. So, so true.

Joshua has a better resume than Fury... How do you work that one out? :poke: Tyson Fury is the king...but he needs to retake his throne.

Ive never considered him the best in the world.

Joshua has a better resume than Fury...

Only if he comes back. That is a big if. If he stays out of the ring then no. If he does come back the WBO, IBF & WBA champions need to beat him to be considered the best. He never lost any of those belts just like John Ruiz got Lennox Lewis' hand me down title that was stripped. That is just my opinion. If he comes back a shell of himself I think it still needs to be cleared up. It doesn't matter which title holder does it or if Fury loses in a tune up he can no longer be considered the best if he loses. The thing is he is the undefeated champion that never lost any of his 3 belts in the ring.

It should never be more than a year. A new lineage should have started with AJ v Wlad, instead of The Ring and various writers holding onto Fury for some weird reason.

He was gonna fight Wlad in 2015!! It's not like he retired the day after the fight. For you to make a comparison between fury, to a fighter who announced before the fight that it is last fight is completely disingenuous. He was penciled in to fight last November. 6 months ago Fury was the baddest man on the planet.... he's been gone 6 months. He was gonna fight him but did he? No, you don't get to hold onto "I'm the best fighter" moniker without actually fighting. He isn't fighting because he screwed up, nobody told that fool to do drugs, he did that to himself and because of that he can't claim to be the best when the other guys are fighting to prove that. I don't care about being "penciled in" did he fight or not and the answer is no. He hasn't fought in what's coming to be 2 years and that's a fact. Matter of fact he has a UKAD hearing to deal with before he can even fight.

If he fights this year... IMO by default he will be HWChampion. However if he sits out this year... then he loses recognition and that lineage dies. Therefore, a new lineage would need to be established again. Which would require eliminators involving Wlad, Wilder, AJ, Ortiz, Povetkin, Fury, Parker & Pulev. This will allow us to recognise and establish a solid 1 - 8 ranking. Through That we can establish a solid 1-4 ranking so that we can establish true lineage. Until top 4 don't fight each other no lineage could be created.

Lineal doesn't mean you're the best. Just the man who beat the man. This. Furry hasn't fought and is neither eligible to fight due to PED and recreational drug intake. He's far from no.1 although he'll be stripped of mythical lineage upon confirmation of his bans for cheating, Klitschko for me would then be no.1 again but he's unfortunately lost fairly to Joshua which stands him the new no.1, a guy who lives and loves the boxing life in and out of the ring.

He's not the top heavy. Dude hasn't fought in almost 2 years. That's like Floyd coming back and saying after 2 years off that he should be rated the best in the world. You don't get it by default, you get it by staying relevant by getting in the ring and beating top competition. He was gonna fight Wlad in 2015!! It's not like he retired the day after the fight. For you to make a comparison between fury, to a fighter who announced before the fight that it is last fight is completely disingenuous. He was penciled in to fight last November. 6 months ago Fury was the baddest man on the planet.... he's been gone 6 months.

He's not the top heavy. Dude hasn't fought in almost 2 years. That's like Floyd coming back and saying after 2 years off that he should be rated the best in the world. You don't get it by default, you get it by staying relevant by getting in the ring and beating top competition. Agreed. I think some people hold on to the 'lineal' tag too much.

He's not the top heavy. Dude hasn't fought in almost 2 years. That's like Floyd coming back and saying after 2 years off that he should be rated the best in the world. You don't get it by default, you get it by staying relevant by getting in the ring and beating top competition.