RIYADH – Tyson Fury’s father John was seen with blood gushing from his forehead on May 13, after a video appeared to show him butting a member of Oleksandr Usyk’s camp in the build-up to the highly anticipated undisputed world heavyweight clash in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on May 18.
The incident took place at the hotel hosting the pre-fight media day and was quickly broken up by security.
Footage shared on X seemed to show John Fury go eyeball-to-eyeball with a man wearing an Usyk team tracksuit before lashing out at him with his head.
The 59-year-old was later seen with a cut forehead and two streams of blood pouring down his face, either side of his nose. Speaking to Sky Sports afterwards, he said: “They were disrespecting my son, the best ever heavyweight to wear a pair of boxing gloves.
“Coming out with all that rubbish, in my face, trying to be clever. Coming into my space, ‘Usyk, Usyk’, nobody is bothering with them, I was only chanting my own son’s name.
“So they stepped closer and stepped closer and at the end of it I am a warrior, that is what we do. If you come in the space, you are going to get what is coming.”
The boxer himself was not present when the incident occurred.
“I didn’t see anything, I was in the room doing interviews. But I’m not here for all that, I’m here to get the job done and go home and rest,” said World Boxing Council heavyweight title holder Tyson.
Saudi authorities said that no charges have been filed regarding the incident at present. But Alexander Krassyuk, the promoter of Usyk, told Sky that John Fury should apologise for his actions.
“It would be nice if we hear some apologies from John because it was his behaviour,” he said.
“We are the example for the world, the whole world is watching us and new generations, kids, are taking us as examples. What will they see from this? What will they make of this? Of course there is going to be some rush on the internet, but it is up to him if he wants to apologise. It is up to him.”
Fury and Usyk are set to face off in the Saudi capital with the winner able to become the first unified champion of boxing’s four-belt era.
In other boxing news, former heavyweight king Mike Tyson said his decision to step back into the ring at the age of 57 was a “no-brainer”, brushing off recent criticism that he was too old to make a comeback.
At a press conference in New York to promote his upcoming bout against YouTuber-turned-fighter Jake Paul, he admitted that training for his return had taken a toll.
“I’m doing great, but my body is s**t right now. I’m sore, I’m really sore,” said Tyson, who faces Paul on July 20 at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
However, the boxer, who terrorised the heavyweight division in the 1980s and 1990s, insisted he had no reservations about lacing up his gloves again, nearly two decades after his last professional fight in 2005.
“It was a no-brainer,” he added. “He’s a new up-and-coming guy on the scene. And I like shaking the sports world to its core and I am doing it now. It’s just something that I want to do.”
Tyson, who turns 58 in June, takes on the 27-year-old Paul in a professional bout comprising eight two-minute rounds that has been sanctioned by boxing authorities in Texas.
However, several members of the boxing community, including former heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder, have voiced reservations about the fight, expressing concern Tyson could be hurt.
Tyson dismissed the doubters though when asked for his response.
“I’m beautiful, that’s all I can say. The people who said that wish that they were up here. No one else can do this,” he said. AFP, REUTERS
