Australian promoter details Fury-Wilder 3 offer, envisions Boxing Day bout

Top Rank’s Bob Arum recently revealed that while Macau is a leading contender to host the threematch between Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder, Australia remains in the running as well. Promoter Dean Lonergan, who teamed up with Arum and co. to host Manny Pacquiao vs. Jeff Horn in Brisbane, offers more details of his proposal to Sky Sports.

“The suggestion was to go to a place called Bankwest Stadium, which can hold about 45,000 people. It’s the middle of summer down here. ... It could go into Melbourne and Marvel Stadium. They had 50,000 people there for the UFC not so long ago, or we could do it at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane.”

Lonergan also has a specific date in mind, one with historical significance to the heavyweight division.

“Wouldn’t it be great to do it on Boxing Day as a celebration of Jack Johnson’s victory for the heavyweight championship over Tommy Burns in 1908 in Rushcutters Bay, Sydney? That way, it would be broadcast back into the US on Christmas night.”

He is also quite confident that Australia and New Zealand will be allowing sizable crowds before long.

First planned for July 18th in Las Vegas, the bout was swiftly pushed back to October 3rd once the pandemic hit, then faced further delays. Wherever the fight lands, don’t expect it until November or December, and don’t expect it to happen without quite a few people in attendance.