Tyson Fury: the ‘Gypsy King’ of the ring riddled with contradictions
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Britain's Tyson Fury (left) and Ukraine's Oleksandr Usyk challenge each other during a press conference in London on November 16, 2023.
PHOTO: AFP
RIYADH – While the rest of the boxing world is drooling in anticipation of a heavyweight world title fight that will unify the division for the first time in over 20 years, Tyson Fury insists that the May 18 clash with Oleksandr Usyk in Riyadh is all about the money.
“The truth is it’s exciting to me and attractive because of the amount of money I’m getting paid,” he said. “Not because of the belts on the line.”
It is true that the self-styled “Gypsy King” will earn north, perhaps far north, of US$100 million (S$135 million) from the fight, but there is a sense that he may just be covering up a little bit.
Fury, now 35, knows well enough what this fight means – a place among the very greats of boxing history.
Going all the way back to Jack Dempsey in the 1920s, only 23 fighters can claim that place in the pantheon. These are great names including Joe Louis, Rocky Marciano, Muhammad Ali and Mike Tyson.
No one, however, has done it, since another British boxer Lennox Lewis defeated Evander Holyfield in 1999.
Usyk holds the World Boxing Association (WBA), World Boxing Organisation (WBO), International Boxing Federation (IBF) and International Boxing Organisation (IBO) belts, while Fury has held the World Boxing Council (WBC) title since 2020.
So is it just about the Saudi gold?
“There are so many belts on the line and nothing competes with that,” Fury said in April in direct contradiction of his recent soundbite.
“This is the fight of the ages, nothing can compare with this. This is two undefeated world heavyweight championships colliding for all the belts and it hasn’t been done since whenever.”
Fury’s boxing path began at birth in Manchester. Three months premature and weighing in at just 450g, he will tip the scales at around 125kg for the Usyk fight – Fury had an early scrap to cling on to life itself.
Fury’s dad, also a boxer, liked his fighting instinct and gave him the name Tyson. Yes, after Mike Tyson.
He shot up in height – he now stands at 2.06m – quit school at 11 and focused on the ring.
In 2008, at the age of 20, he made his professional debut stopping Hungarian fighter Bela Gyongyosi in the first round.
His record 16 years later reads an impressive 34 wins, 24 by knockout, and no defeats, the only semblance of a blemish being the draw with Deontay Wilder in 2018.
It was the first of three fights between the two, with Fury sending the American sprawling to the canvas in the next two.
The Briton’s last outing in October 2023, which was also in Riyadh, saw him take on Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou in his first boxing match.
An overweight, sluggish Fury struggled. He was knocked down in the third round before going on to win via a controversial split decision.
But that performance has not swayed Lewis, who believes that Fury has the armoury to follow him as an undisputed heavyweight champion.
“Tyson Fury’s got lots of different weapons in his arsenal. He has shown in the fights with Deontay Wilder he is aggressive and moves forward well,” he said.
“I would put money on Fury – as long as it is the 100-per-cent-focused Fury.”
The “Gypsy King” himself is in no doubt that this is the moment when he joins those other boxing legends.
“This is my time, my destiny, my era and my generation. Fact,” he said. AFP
