Tyson Fury-Deontay Wilder PPV Buys Prove Heavyweight Boxing is Back
By Scott Rogust
Deontay Wilder vs. Tyson Fury II was the most anticipated boxing rematch in recent memory, and had the feel of a big-time, marquee event all aroud. And the numbers officially prove it.
According to Mike Coppinger of The Athletic, the second act between the Fury and Wilder generated around 800,000-850,000 pay per view buys in North America. This is the most buys for a heavyweight fight since Mike Tyson vs. Lennox Lewis back in 2002.
Sources: The rematch between Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury generated in the neighborhood of approxmately 800,000 to 850,000 pay-per-view buys in North America. Best performance - by far - for a heavyweight title fight since Tyson-Lewis in 2002. Wilder-Fury 1 sold around 325K buys
— Mike Coppinger (@MikeCoppinger) February 27, 2020
As Coppinger mentions, the rematch more than doubled the PPV volume of the first fight between the Bronze Bomber and the Gypsy King in 2018, an event that ended in a controversial split draw.
After a whole lot of trash talk and shoving at weigh-ins, even casual fans were drawn in to watch the big fight this past Saturday. As you surely now know, Fury combined superb boxing technique with surprising power to combat Wilder's untamed fighting style to score the technical knockout victory in the seventh round.
Deontay Wilder says a lot of things went wrong leading up to his fight against Tyson Fury, including miscalculating the effect his 40-pound costume would have on his legs. https://t.co/jHTfUnSEm8
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) February 25, 2020
Earlier this week, Wilder revealed that he will invoke his rematch clause to force a third fight between boxing's biggest stars. Rumors are the last fight in the trilogy could take place in the 70,000-seat Allegiant Stadium, home of the Las Vegas Raiders, though Fury may insist on bringing things home to Britain.
Who says heavyweight boxing is dead? It's a whole new world here in 2020, and Tyson Fury is the king of it all.