Tyson Fury and Hafthor Bjornsson are in talks for a November clash
Tyson Fury, the reigning heavyweight champion, has expressed his desire to fight in exhibition bouts. The first exhibition bout for ’The Gypsy King’ may come against Hafthor 'Thor' Bjornsson; the pair are in talks for a potential matchup in November.
The exact location for the potential fight has not been revealed, but it is probably going to be a football stadium in London. The Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, which hosted Anthony Joshua vs. Oleksander Usyk, and Wembley Stadium are the likeliest venues. Fury last fought at Wembley against Dillian Whyte.
Fury said:
"It would be a bit of fun. It would be great to get in there in front of, say, 70,000 fans and show him [Hafthor] what boxing is all about, make him miss, and knock him out. We are talking to his team at the moment and it is definitely something I'm interested in."
A fight between the pair is likely to be a lopsided victory for Fury. Tyson Fury is the WBC World Heavyweight Champion, while Bjornsson, though a former world's strongest man, is a novice to the sweet-science of boxing.
Floyd Mayweather, however, has proven that exhibition fights against celebrities can sell. Mayweather vs. Logan Paul generated more than one million pay-per-view buys in the US.
Whilst Hafthor Bjornsson has had four previous bouts, none of them have been at stadiums. Bjornsson's first two fights were in the ballroom of the Conrad Dubai hotel. Both were unscored exhibition bouts. The third fight was against arm-wrestler Devon Larratt, also in Dubai, but this time at the Sports City Arena. The biggest fight of his career was against Eddie Hall at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis arena.
Watch Hafthor Bjornsson-Eddie Hall:
Tyson Fury is a huge star in the United Kingdom
No matter who Fury decides to face next, his next bout is likely to sell like hot cakes. Fury broke records in his last fight as he sold out the Wembley Stadium. 94,000 fans were in attendance even though the stadium could only hold 84,000.
‘The Gypsy King’ has gotten more enterprising with his rising success: he recently went on a speaking tour, launched an energy drink, and released a book.
Watch Tyson Fury speak about future bouts:
Whoever Tyson Fury faces next, the bout is likely to be a hugely profitable affair, no matter whether it’s Hafthor Bjornsson or the winner of Anthony Joshua vs. Oleksander Usyk 2. Fury's continued dominance at heavyweight has made him a fan-favorite, especially in his home country of the UK.