‘I’m the boss’ – Tyson Fury pulls rank on AJ & Wilder

Tyson Fury says he’s “the boss” at heavyweight, and he used the latest edition of The Ring magazine rankings to prove it in a social media post on Thursday.

‘The Gypsy King’ has already handed ‘The Bronze Bomber’ (42-1-1) the first defeat of his professional career. And he is hoping to take Joshua’s belts in their planned unification match this summer.

Fury is Ring boss

Fury (30-0-1) posted the social media message showing him as the champion with Joshua and Wilder the number 1 and 2 beneath him in the rankings.

Fury is impatiently waiting confirmation of when and where his bout with AJ will take place. They have signed contracts for a two-fight deal.

The two teams are now closing in on the end of a window to finalise the venue – the Middle East remains hot favourite to host the first bout with COVID-19 continuing to restrict crowds at major events in the UK.

Boxing’s rankings of course are notoriously controversial, with a string of governing bodies providing a fractured landscape in every weight division.

Fury currently holds the WBC title while Joshua is the IBF, WBA and WBO champion. The Ring magazine is probably the most respected title though, while Fury is also the accepted lineal champion.

Whyte #3 with Ring

After the top three (Fury as champ, then AJ and Wilder), Dillian Whyte comes next at #3 in the latest Ring rankings. He is followed by Luis Ortiz, Joseph Parker and Andy Ruiz Jr. Ruiz Jr and Park both have fights upcoming on May 1 – Ruiz Jr against Chris Arreola and Parker against Dereck Chisora.

Michael Hunter is #7 on the Ring list, followed by Alexander Povetkin, Oscar Rivas and Oleksandr Usyk to round off the top 10.

There is likely to be more change soon, with Povetkin likely to retire after that crushing defeat by Whyte last month. Rivas meanwhile is expected to fight for the new WBC bridgerweight title in the near future.