Although an undisputed fight between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk is yet to be formally announced, when it is fans can expect an increase in pay-per-view price.
The contest – which is perhaps the biggest that can be made in the sport in terms of legacy – pits both heavyweight champions against one another to crown just one king in the division.
The Brit and the Ukrainian are said to both be keen to make it happen, and a formal announcement is expected soon.
Given how things are progressing, questions are already being asked about how fans might watch. With the potential of a Middle East country hosting, many will be tuning in via broadcast.
TalkSPORT asked Frank Warren if the pay-per-view price would be pushed up given the magnitude of the event.
“Oh yeah. With the four belts on the line, without discussing it with anyone, I’m sure the price will go up. It’s the same if Tyson had fought AJ, the price would go up. They are the two big money fights.”
Fury’s latest fight – a trouble-free beating of Derek Chisora – was set at a record price point in the UK for the fighter. Fans watching from home had to fork out £26.95 for the privilege, whilst US viewers had the fight included in their ESPN+ subscription.
With that in mind, the undisputed fight may cost closer to £30.
For years the standard in the UK was £19.95. Anthony Joshua’s stardom on Sky Sports pushed that up to £24.95, before increasing again to £26.95 for his first fight against Usyk. Fury’s second and third Wilder fights, despite being broadcast in the early hours of the morning, were set at £24.95 – the same as his 2022 defence against Dillian Whyte.
The pattern of a steady increase isn’t hard to identify, although it still pales in comparison to US fans who regularly fork out around $70 for pay-per-view pleasures.
Elsewhere in the interview, Warren went into the basics of what a broadcaster might charge and why, noting that the deal between fighters is the deciding factor.
“It depends what the structure of the deal is. If they put up some sort of guarantees, then obviously they’re looking to recover their guarantees which will determine the price.
If there isn’t a guarantee and done on a share basis, then, again, that determines what the price would be.”
Although nothing has been announced and talks are still ongoing, the undisputed fight is expected, as per all of Fury’s fights, to again land on BT Sport Box Office in the UK and ESPN.
As for the location and date, both are still to be agreed and announced before PPV pricing can be properly discussed.