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

[Caught Square]

It was great that he went to Germany and dethroned Wlad but it's mid 2017 and you have Fury and others saying he's still the real champ when he hasn't fought at all since then and is way out of shape. I feel like the gold dust from that night in Dusseldorf can only last so long without fighting again.

I could give him the benefit of the doubt for a year tops but surely he has to return and prove he's still the man? at least return in shape and beat a fringe contender then i could understand. Plus this UKAD thing is going on forever so who knows if he can even return in July as planned? Right now i can't rank him at all simply because he's inactive and way over his best fighting weight.

[Rip Chudd]

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.

[Caught Square]

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.

[Pigeons]

Lineal doesn't mean you're the best. Just the man who beat the man.

[HWChampion]

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.

[Jewish-Reptile]

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.

[The Hammer]

The best HW right now is Anthony Joshua.

[HWChampion]

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.

[Rip Chudd]

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.

[soul_survivor]

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.