Promoters Considering Allegiant Stadium for Fury-Wilder III in December

Posted on: July 2, 2020, 04:58h. 

Last updated on: July 3, 2020, 09:39h.

Steve Bittenbender Read More

Expertise: Legislation, Sports Betting, Horse Racing.

Reports are circulating that Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder will meet again in Las Vegas this year, only the venue will be a little bigger this time.

ESPN reported on Wednesday that promoters for the third match between the two heavyweight boxers for the WBC and lineal heavyweight belts could take place on Saturday, Dec. 19 at Allegiant Stadium. The $1.84 billion stadium, set to open later this year, will be the home for the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders.

Construction on the stadium is scheduled to be completed by the end of this month.

The Raiders are playing on that Thursday, which is perfect,” Top Rank Founder and CEO Bob Arum told the network. “After the game is over, we put up the ring and so forth. We have a couple of days to do it, and Saturday we have the fight.”

Promoters say the expansive stadium — with 65,000 seats for football — could be useful since no one knows what kind of social distancing guidelines will be in place five months from now. When Fury and Wilder last met, on Feb. 22, they fought before more than 15,800, a capacity crowd at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

Previous reports indicated the bout may end up in Macau.

How We Got Here

The two first fought in December 2018, with the match ending in a draw. It was a drama-filled match, with Fury (30-0-1, 21 KO) surviving two knockdowns, including one in the final round, to avoid his first career loss.

More than a year later, they held the long-anticipated rematch, with Fury dominating from the start. He would eventually score a technical knockout in the seventh round after Wilder’s corner threw in the towel.

After the fight, Wilder (42-1-1, 41 KO) quickly triggered the rematch clause for the third bout. But he also needed to sit out 60 days after the loss, per the Nevada State Athletic Commission. By the time that was over, the COVID-19 crisis was in full swing, and hopes for a summer showdown between the two camps quickly went away.

While planning for the rematch continued, Fury’s camp made news last month with the announcement of a two-fight deal with fellow British heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua — the WBA, WBO, IBF, and IBO champion — that would start next year. That deal, though, is contingent on Fury beating Wilder one more time and Joshua winning his next fight against Kubrat Pulev.

A date for Joshua-Pulev has not yet been announced.

Fury Favored to Win Again

Oddsmakers have Fury as the favorite to win the third bout against Wilder.

BetMGM offers similar odds, with Fury at -358 and Wilder at +250. In a three-way market, Fury’s odds are the same. Wilder is at +275, and odds for a draw are +2500.

At William Hill, Fury’s available at -270, while Wilder is a +220 underdog.