Teddy Atlas has given his take on who is the ‘face of boxing.’
The term ‘face of boxing’ has often divided the boxing community, with the debate being between belts or commercial pulling power. This was notably shown during Gervonta Davis’ win over Ryan Garcia. Despite neither fighter having a world title at lightweight, as Devin Haney is the undisputed champion, Tank’s win was seen as his moment of being the ‘face of boxing.’ At the same time, Garcia earned a reported $30 million in a non-title fight.
Although there are other names who could challenge Davis for that title, such as Canelo Alvarez or the recently undisputed welterweight champion Terence Crawford, Atlas has seen another fighter taking that mantle. Atlas named Tyson Fury as the face of boxing. The Gypsy King does have a huge crossover appeal since his comeback from mental health struggles and his subsequent trilogy with Deontay Wilder. His popularity has earned him a Netflix reality show, WWE appearances and now a huge crossover fight with Francis Ngannou. With that being said, this is what Atlas had to say.
“Fury is, and I know some people will probably get mad when I say this, you could argue he’s the face of boxing right now. He’s the heavyweight champ, he’s the most vocal guy and he’s the best self promoter in the game. It’s almost impossible not to see or hear something about him, so how are you going to get rid of a guy that is really the star, in many ways, of your franchise? There’s a lot of issues there. I would love to see him fight more – I would love to see him in more competitive fights,” Atlas
Nevertheless, Fury’s popularity is declining in light of his failure to fight Oleksandr Usyk and the other big names. The WBC heavyweight champion has made it clear that he has no desire to fight the best, as the focus is on making the most lucrative fights. And that has alienated a section of the boxing community.
Social Media Response
Fury's too busy doing exhibitions
— Gav Prosser (@GavPross84) September 23, 2023
Tyson wont fight any boggy man. He will wait till they not at best then fight them
— RF_Trend_Facts (@RHF1948) September 25, 2023
Fury doesn't wanna face pro boxers for the time being
— Romell Marquez (@MarquezRomell) September 23, 2023