The rematch of one of the most dramatic heavyweight title bouts of the modern era has finally become official.
Seven months after WBC titleholder Deontay Wilder first tweeted that his rematch with lineal champion and fellow unbeaten Tyson Fury had been signed, the fighters' extended teams made it official Friday by confirming the date, venue and broadcast information.
Wilder-Fury II will take place Feb. 22 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas as a joint pay-per-view aligning Fox Sports, the new home of Wilder (42-0-1, 41 KOs), and ESPN, which has broadcast the last two fights for Fury (29-0-1, 20 KOs) since he signed a co-promotional deal with Top Rank.
"There's no more ducking and diving," Fury said. "The date has been set, and the 'Bomb Squad' is about to be securely detonated and the real champion crowned as the world watches on for the most anticipated fight in years. This is unfinished business for me, but come February 22, this dosser will finally get what's coming to him, and I can't wait!"
Fury got up from a pair of knockdowns, including a devastating two-punch combination that floored him in Round 12, to settle for a disputed split draw against Wilder in their December 2018 meeting at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. Many observers felt the 6-foot-9 Fury, a native of England, deserved the decision for soundly outboxing the 6-foot-7 Wilder.
Immediate rematch negotiations fell apart once Fury aligned himself with Hall of Famer Bob Arum in a co-promotional deal meant to build up Fury's brand in the United States on ESPN ahead of a potential rematch. Fury did his part by defeating a pair of unheralded names in Tom Schwarz and Otto Wallin in 2019, and even took part in a WWE match in Saudi Arabia to further raise his awareness.
Fury, 31, nearly fell out of the Wilder sweepstakes, however, when Wallin badly cut him above his left eye in September, forcing him to brawl his way to decision after being badly rocked in the final round.
Wilder, a native of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, also raised his stock with a pair of viral knockouts that were both worthy of best-of-year consideration. Wilder needed just one round (and one punch) to finish Dominic Breazeale in May before rallying back on the scorecards to finish Luis Ortiz in dramatic fashion to end their November rematch.
"I'm happy and I'm excited that the rematch is finally happening," Wilder said. "I want to give the fans what they want to see. I've been doing it with my last three outings -- Fury, Breazeale and Ortiz. They've been spectacular events -- from my ring walks where I gather all the energy of the people, to my uniforms that I wear to help spread that energy. Then I give them what they all come for -- the knockouts, and my knockouts have been amazing.
"I proved myself the first time and I'm ready to do it again. It was a very controversial fight. I promise my fans that there won't be any controversy with this one. I'm going to finish it."
