With the recent announcement that the long-awaited heavyweight unification showdown between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk has been “completed,” or “signed,” IBF mandatory challenger Filip Hrgovic finds himself in a frustrating position. I noticed that Hrgovic, who has been a mandatory IBF fighter since August 2022, when the undefeated Croatian defeated Zhang Zhilei (in a controversial decision), is still waiting for his chance.
The victory over Chang was followed by a win over Demsey McKean, and Hrgovic retained his IBF mandatory spot with a second-half stoppage victory that came a full year after his fight against Chang. But now, with a heavyweight unification bout seemingly set in stone (yes, a lot of people are taking the “I’ll believe it when we both get in the ring” attitude), Hrgovic has decided to make the long-awaited match even more likely. Looks like I have to keep going.
A fight for unification is better than a mandate, but Hrgović’s promoter Nisse Sauerland told Seocnds Out: “Since the fight last August, we’ve been just waiting and watching, so we’re considering some kind of legal procedure.” By the way,” he said.
Sauerland claims this is completely unfair and that his fighters are entitled to the shots they earn. But Sauerland said he expects Hrgovic will ultimately have to “stay busy” as he continues to wait for his shot, even with any legal proceedings.
“We have a position. We can’t really discuss it here. We’ve been just waiting for a forced appearance since last August against Chan, so we’re considering some kind of legal procedure,” Sauerland said. Ta. “We ended up fighting Demsey McKean to defend our ranking and mandatory spot. I understand that everyone wants to see this fight [between Fury and Usyk].And no matter what anyone says [about Hrgovic] – “He doesn’t deserve it” – He’s in it [mandatory] position. So you want to make a man wait a year and a half? It is not very moral for him to lose his income at the peak of his career. I guess he’s going to have to keep busy, right? Let’s see. He has been out for too long due to injury or lack of exercise. ”
If this goes according to their plan, it seems most likely that Hrgovic and his team will not be able to object to a Usyk vs. Fury fight taking place before Hrgovic fires on Usyk. Perhaps Hrgovic will need to stay busy and sharp while waiting for the dust to settle between Fury and Usyk. Who could easily fight him twice, maybe even three times.
No, as far as Hrgović is concerned, it may not be “very moral.” He will have to wait more than two years to shoot. But a big, publicly requested, four-belt heavyweight unification superfight that the whole world wants to see is what we want and what the sport needs. It should be held soon.
For Hrgovic, this means he has to remain as patient as possible.
