Heavyweight contender Tyson Fury believes that now a lot of people are recognizing him as the best fighter of his era, and the best fighter of the entire heavyweight division.
Fury will return to the ring on Saturday night, at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. He takes on heavy underdog Tom Schwarz of Germany.
The bout will be the first contest for Fury as part of his co-promotional deal with Top Rank and ESPN.
Fury indicates that he doesn't want to commit the same mistake as countryman Anthony Joshua.
He believes Joshua had overlooked massive underdog Andy Ruiz - who pulled off one of the biggest upsets in ages when he dropped Joshua four times for a stoppage victory in the seventh round to capture the WBO, IBF, IBO, WBA world titles.
“I’m the best of my era and if I can’t beat Tom Schwarz, I might as well retire,” Fury told Gareth Davies of Telegraph Sport.
“There is a difference between a man who fights well under pressure, and the man who goes to the office not feeling great and still gets a victory. I can have a bad day, but I can still grind victories out of bad days. It’s a difference in champions. If I can’t beat Tom Schwarz then what is the point in boxing anymore? I must be shot. We won’t know until we get in there. A lot of people say I might be chinny after the Deontay Wilder fight. We don’t know. It’s exciting times.”
Fury went to a controversial twelve round split draw last December in Los Angeles. A rematch is being targeted for the early part of 2020.
“I believe, many believe, that now I’m the best of my era. I went to Germany and beat Wladimir Klitschko. Came to America and beat Deontay Wilder. Today the Ring magazine put me back at No 1 where I belong. They don’t get it wrong. Wilder at two. Ruiz at three and Joshua at four. I believe that’s fair," Fury said.
“There was a three-horse race – three unbeaten heavyweights – and then there were two. I’ve already beaten the guy who is at two, so unless someone we don’t know about comes out of the woodwork, then I’ve already cemented my place as the best."