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Manchester Evening News
Manchester Evening News
Sport
Will Freeman

Why was Tommy Fury vs Jake Paul fight cancelled and will it ever happen?

Tommy Fury returns to the ring on Sunday night to fight Rolly Lambert in a late replacement exhibition bout on the undercard of Floyd Mayweather vs Deji. Manchester boxer and former Love Island contestant Fury was supposed to be fighting Paul Bamba in Dubai tonight but the American pulled out of the contest over a weight issue.

Fury weighed in at 181.4lbs - over 7lbs more than his opponent - and said he was given a different fight contract to the one handed to Bamba. The 23-year-old will now fight Lambert, the WBC and WBC Asia champion at cruiserweight, in an exhibition contest staged across six two-minute rounds.

Fury has long had a rivalry with Jake Paul, the American YouTuber turned boxer. Paul is expected to be in attendance at the Coca Cola Arena tonight to watch the event.

READ MORE: Mayweather vs Deji LIVE updates with Fury fight

Paul, 25, is undefeated so far in his boxing career, extending that record against Anderson Silva recently. Silva was Paul's toughest opponent to date, with the Brazilian-American regarded as one of the greatest of all time in the UFC having been one of its earliest stars.

But Paul was awarded the win by a unanimous decision in October.

Paul was supposed to be fighting Fury on two occasions in the past year, with the Brit withdrawing twice for different reasons. Here, we take a look why talks with Fury broke down.

Why isn't Tommy Fury fighting Jake Paul?

Fury and Paul have long since been adversaries, with a proposed fight having been on the cards for over a year now. The first fight was due to be taking place last December before Fury withdrew, citing both injury and illness for his withdrawal.

He was supposed to to fight Fury in a rearranged bout this summer before the fight fell through with the Love Island star having been denied access to the US following Visa issues.

He replaced Fury with Hasim Rahman Jr, with the American heavyweight set to become the first specialist boxer to face Paul. However, the fight was called off with a weight dispute between the pair leading him down the path to face Silva on October 29.

For Fury, tonight's bout against Lambert is his first since beating Daniel Bocianski on the undercard of his older brother Tyson's world title fight against Dillian Whyte at Wembley in April.

Paul is ringside in Dubai on Sunday as he continues to bid for interest in a fight with Fury which may well happen next year.

READ NEXT:

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Why Paul vs Fury fight was cancelled and will it ever happen

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