Another wrench has been thrown in the Tyson Fury vs. Wladimir Klitschko fight that is set for October 29 as Fury missed a press conference to promote the fight.
Promoter Frank Warren provided an explanation for Fury's absence, noting that it was not on purpose.
"All we know at this stage, and his phone battery has gone, is that he has had problems with traffic and his car has broken down," Warren said. "This fight is going ahead despite some of the rumours around it."
There had been rumblings about whether or not Fury would be eligible to fight after the United Kingdom Anti-Doping (UKAD) charged both Fury and his cousin Hughie for failed drug tests earlier this summer. They were suspended by the agency, but the suspension was lifted until the case was fully resolved.
Warren said that despite the issues with the UKAD, the agency assured all parties that the fight is still planned for October 29 at the Manchester Arena in Manchester, England.
"There are no problems with UKAD or drugs," Warren said. "Mr. [Charles] Flint [head of the agency] said on Friday that the fight will go ahead and the hearing will be after so it will not interfere with it. The fight is all signed and there [are] no problems. The only problem we have is his car breaking down today. I'll get him on my motorbike if it breaks down again on the night of the fight."
Another storyline regarding this fight also saw Klitschko sue Fury for wanting to change several aspects in their fight contract. Klitschko said that he will wait however long it takes to get his rematch against the champion.
"I won't be surprised if something else happens, I'm prepared for anything to achieve my goal and I'm obsessed by that," said Klitschko. "But eventually we will meet in the ring. The fight is going to come up for real and if it's not going to happen in October I will wait. I may be 41 then but I will wait if it gets put back to March or something. Eventually time will run out for the champion because he will need to defend the titles."
This fight is a rematch from their November 2015 encounter when Fury defeated Klitschko for the WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, IBO, The Ring and lineal heavyweight titles. The two were originally set to face off on July 9, but Fury suffered an ankle injury in June that postponed the fight.
