Tyson Fury’s father John Fury isn’t known for a lot of empty praise, and he doesn’t see much out there worth praising in the heavyweight division past his son.
John doesn’t see Anthony Joshua as a real threat to Tyson, saying, “It will take a lot better than AJ to beat Tyson.”
But as for the future, John Fury does see one heavyweight out there he thinks has massive potential:
“There’s one: Jared Anderson. He’s an unbeaten heavyweight with Bob Arum. I do believe he can be the next big thing when Tyson is gone. But the kid is only 21 years old. He’s got a bit to do yet. He’s the only one who stands out for me. All these other guys? They are all on the same par.”
The young Anderson (9-0, 9 KO) has definitely impressed pretty much everyone since turning pro in 2019. He’s been featured on Top Rank cards ever since then and picked up some prospect buzz, stopping all opponents he’s faced. He was a “bubble” favorite with five wins in that Las Vegas setting between June 2020 and February 2021, and just fought on April 10, plowing through Jeremiah Karpency inside of two rounds.
Anderson, as Fury notes, has a long way to go. The competition has been carefully chosen, but the skills look very real. He’s quick, he’s a good athlete, he’s got power, and he’s a big guy, 6’4” and weighing around 250 recently, coming up from 235 or so when he turned pro. And it’s not “bad” weight he’s added.
He is definitely the top American prospect in the division, really no argument there, and may be the best overall heavyweight prospect at the moment. Combine all those attributes to like with the fact that he’s really young and staying very active, there’s a lot to like. Listen: If John Fury is praising you, you’re looking pretty good.