John Locher/Associated Press

Tyson Fury Defeats Tom Schwarz Via 2nd-Round TKO, Retains Lineal Title

Nate Loop

Tyson Fury loves to entertain, and he did just that on Saturday night in Las Vegas. The undefeated heavyweight boxer made quick work of the woefully overmatched Tom Schwarz, earning a TKO victory in the second round. Even in that short time, he showed he's a complete fighter. 

Bleacher Report's Jonathan Snowden and CBS Sports' Brian Campbell reacted to the win:

ESPN Stats & Info showed just how dominant Fury was:

With the win, Fury (28-0-1, 20 KOs) retained his claim as the lineal heavyweight champion of the world, maintaining an unbeaten record since his win over then-undisputed champion Wladimir Klitschko in 2015. The victory also keeps him on track for a rematch with WBC world titleholder Deontay Wilder in early 2020. The two fought to a memorable draw in December 2018. 

Fury called out Wilder after the bout, saying they will fight next year and he would "make him give me that green belt," per the ESPN Plus broadcast. Fury did say he would have another fight later in 2019 in the interim. Sports Illustrated's Chris Mannix provided some insight on who that might be:

Whoever it is will have their work cut out for them. Against Schwarz, the 30-year-old looked as good as he ever has.

Fury started putting on a show with his ring walk, coming out to James Brown's "Living in America" in a full star-spangled, Apollo Creed-style getup. Here's a look, via Top Rank Boxing:

Fury is a large, gangly human being but is able to make the trickiest moves in boxing look smooth and easy. In the first round, it was all jab work—much of it off the back foot, no less—as he mixed it up between the head and the body. It kept Schwarz (24-1, 16 KOs) off balance, though he did manage to snap off a couple of good shots in between Fury's combinations. 

That was merely a warm-up round, because the second saw Fury open up a full bag of tricks. He switched into a southpaw stance and immediately stunned Schwarz with a left uppercut. The "Gypsy King" then showed off the defensive slickness, bobbing and weaving out of the range of at least five punches with his back to the ropes. 

Not long after that, Fury trapped Schwarz on the ropes, and a punch right down the middle to Schwarz's bloodied nose forced the German challenger to the canvas. 

The end was near. Not wanting to waste any time, Fury trapped Schwarz in the corner and unloaded. Even with the final seconds of the second round about to tick away, the referee had no choice but to step in and stop the bloodshed. 

BoxingScene.com's Cliff Rold marveled at Fury's defensive ability:

 

Ring's Ryan Songalia felt it was a perfect showcase for his skill set:

With Fury on his game, the heavyweight boxing division is one of the most interesting in the sport. Assuming Wilder gets past Luis Ortiz later in 2019, his fight with Fury will be a massive draw.

Anthony Joshua is still in the mix, so long as he can rebound from his shock loss to Andy Ruiz Jr. And who knows, perhaps Ruiz Jr. can make good on his famous win and challenge the likes of Fury and Wilder. 

Fury maintains he's the true heavyweight champion of the world, and there's little doubt he will get the chance to prove it within his next couple of fights.    

   

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