Tommy Fury failed to show up for the press conference to promote his February 26 bout with social media superstar Jake Paul.
The two undefeated fighters are scheduled to square off live from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia with a 2 p.m. ET/11 a.m. PT start time. Announced as part of the press conference, the event will be available in the United States through ESPN+ for $49.99 while fans in Canada can catch the long-awaited matchup on FITE TV and DAZN. FITE will also serve as the distributor for the event in Asia, India, Brazil, and throughout Europe with the exception of the United Kingdom and Ireland. BT Sport Box Office will handle distribution duties for those two locations.
While fans and the media got a lot of important information regarding the highly anticipated showdown, many of the questions at the press conference surrounded the lack of an appearance by Paul’s opponent Tommy Fury. In an interview with MMA Fighting, ‘TNT’ cleared the air on his absence and criticized the decision to hold a press event two weeks before the fight when he is still deep in training camp.
“I can clear that up in two seconds,” Fury said. “Basically, Jake Paul signed up into the world of professional boxing and I am a professional athlete, a professional boxer. I always have been and [ask] any professional boxer and they’ll tell you this — no one breaks camp, mid to the end [of training camp] to fly all the way to Saudi Arabia, have a 10-minute press conference, fly all the way back to Manchester, complete my camp then fly all the way back to Saudi Arabia again the following week.
“Now why the press conference couldn’t wait until a week later on fight week is beyond me. Most big fights, they schedule press conferences on fight week. I don’t know what is going on there.”
'He's not a professional, he's a flake, he's not a serious fighter'@jakepaul has gone all in on Tommy Fury here 👀#PaulFury | Feb 26 | BT Sport Box Office | #JakePaul pic.twitter.com/mWzA5Ux7lw
— Boxing on TNT Sports (@boxingontnt) February 8, 2023
Tommy Fury is Staying Focused on the Task at Hand
Jake Paul took every opportunity to take a dig at his opponent at the press event, but Tommy Fury, he’s focused on preparing for a fight rather than trash-talking and globetrotting around the world seeking clout.
“I don’t know if he’s trying to play mind games or anything but that’s definitely not how it works,” Fury said. “One man’s flying all over the globe, trying to get in the glitz and glamour, press conferences, whatever else, and one man’s in the gym training to annihilate this man. So I think the proof is in the pudding. You can see who the professional athlete is.
“I’m not interested in press conferences. I’m interested in completing my camp, which has been the best camp of my career and I’m ready to KO this man and get him out of the sport.”
Fury’s lack of presence had individuals questioning whether or not ‘TNT’ would show up on February 26. Their concerns are not without merit as this is the third time the two fighters have been scheduled to square off. The first time fell through as Fury suffered an injury while training. The second attempt was the result of Fury having a “private and personal matter” to attend to.
“Things have got in the way the previous two times,” Fury said. “Things well out of my control. A broke rib and everything else that was wrong with the first fight. The second fight, denied entry into the U.S. Third fight, here we are. Three times is a charm and we’re seeing that.
“We’re two weeks out. I’m ripped, I’m ready, I’m fit, I’m strong and I’ve got more in the tank than what it takes to beat Jake Paul. Don’t worry about that.”
Transcription courtesy of MMA Fighting
