British Heavyweight Boxing Preview – Tyson Fury and David Price
By: Callum Meads
On Friday 30th November the British public are set to see the two best heavyweight prospects in the country fight it out on the same night. Questions will be asked, and parallels will be drawn, but will these two contests pave the way for the fight we all want to see? Gigantic heavyweight prospect Tyson Fury will be stepping up in class against American contender Kevin ‘Kingpin’ Johnson. The fight will take place over 12 rounds and will be fought at the Odyssey Arena in front of a packed out Belfast crowd. The hard hitting David Price will be battling it out with 45 year old Matt Skelton, a crafty journeyman who specialises in making life difficult for whoever he shares the ring with. The fight will take place in Price’s hometown of Liverpool, where the stalwart crowd in attendance will do their very best to empower their fighter to victory.
Tyson Fury is entering this fight off the back of two impressive 5th round TKO’s over durable opposition. However, his initial plan was to be standing across the ring from the dangerous Russian prospect, Denis Boystov. When that fight collapsed, Kevin Johnson stepped in as a respectable replacement. The American fighter comes from the school of heavyweights that never quite made it. . This was realized in his 12 round unanimous defeat to the dominant Vitali Klitschko. His most recent efforts in the ring include a failed to attempt to claim the Prizefighter crown at York Hall, losing to Tor Hamer in the final round of the tournament. Although Johnson’s has long been heading south, he does bring a genuine skillset and ability to the ring, something that Tyson Fury has not faced a lot of in his short career. However, this fight is a perfect stepping stone for Fury, and it is one that he should be able to win. Johnson has ability, but often lacks the determination to apply those skills for the full 12 rounds. The constant pressure and clubbing shots from Tyson Fury should prove too much for the American to handle.
David Price may see a completely different test this coming Friday, as he could be in for a long night against the always awkward Matt Skelton. Price is coming off an easy victory against Skelton’s former British rival Audley Harrison. We weren’t able to learn much from this fight other than what was already apparent. Audley Harrison has no business been in the ring with anyone of genuine contention and that David Price is ready to step it up to the next level. However, Matt Skelton does not provide a clear path in that direction, as the journeyman has been defeated whenever he has stepped up beyond British level. If anything, this fight should allow us to see more of David Price, and how his performances compare to the likes of Kubrat Pulev. Skelton was stopped by Pulev in the 4th round, which immediately lays down a target for David Price. Skelton is tough but he isn’t on the level of either of the two fighters in question, especially not at the age of 45. I would be very surprised to see anything less than a dominant David Price victory. Hopefully these two fights will act as eliminators to the only fight in Britain that makes sense right now. David Price, Tyson Fury, the summer is yours.
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