British heavyweight Tyson Fury delivered a powerful knockout in gloves emblazoned with St George’s Cross in what may be his final fight.
The 33-year-old ‘Gypsy King’ knocked out 34-year-old challenger Dillian Whyte in an all-British affair at Wembley Stadium in front of around 94,000 fans, in what he has claimed will be his last bout.
LONDON, ENGLAND – APRIL 23: Tyson Fury makes his way into the ring prior to the WBC World Heavyweight title fight between Tyson Fury and Dillian Whyte at Wembley Stadium on April 23, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)
“This might be the final curtain for the Gypsy King,” the champion said after the fight, citing the long time he has spent “on the road” away from his family while pursuing his career.
“I will retire as only the second heavyweight in history, after Rocky Marciano, to retire undefeated. I was unbeatable at this game,” he added.
Britain’s Tyson Fury lands a blow on Britain’s Dillian Whyte during their WBC heavyweight title boxing fight at Wembley Stadium in London, Saturday, April 23, 2022. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)
Fury admitted he had already promised his wife he would retire after completing his trilogy with American knockout artist Deontay Wilder, but felt he “owed it to the fans” to do one more after being offered a fight at England’s iconic Wembley Stadium.
“I would like him to come out now. He has nothing more to prove. If he had anything left to do, I would say ‘Yeah Tyson, you do it’. But he has nothing to prove,” his wife, Paris, confirmed in comments to BT Sport.
“For Tyson to keep boxing, it just seems for one reason and I know in my heart, I think the only reason that Tyson will come back is for the unification fight,” she added.
Previously, the opponent in such a bout would have been Anthony Joshua, a fellow Briton and high-drawing star — but his belts were taken from him by former cruiserweight Oleksandr Usyk in a decisive drubbing last year.
Usyk must first rematch Joshua before a Fury unification bout could take place, with matters further complicated by the fact that Usyk’s native Ukraine is currently at war with Russia.
These awkward factors stretch out the timeline for a potential unification bout with either Usyk or Joshua long enough that Fury may have decided he is unwilling to wait around for it.
Fury was gracious to Dillian Whyte in victory, calling him a “warrior” and predicting that “he will be a world champion” one day.
“One of the greatest and, unfortunately, he had to fight me tonight. You are not messing with a mediocre heavyweight, you are messing with the best man on the planet,” he said.
Whyte, finished by a devastating uppercut in the sixth round, was for his part upbeat, suggesting he did not feel he had been truly “outclassed” in the ring.
“My game plan was to press him and start moving forward. I was trying to attack but one slip and I got caught with the shot,” he said, adding that the loss was “a good learning experience.”
LONDON, ENGLAND – APRIL 23: Tyson Fury celebrates knocking out Dillian Whyte after the WBC World Heavyweight title fight between himself and Dillian Whyte at Wembley Stadium on April 23, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)
However, for all the talk of retiring from boxing — and Fury has un-retired before — the groundwork for another bout may have been laid before the Gypsy King even left the arena, with UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou joining him in the ring to talk up a potential fight in 2023.
“This is going to be a very special fight like never before seen in the history of our sport,” said Fury, appearing to suggest that a bout between himself and the “270 pounds” mixed martial artist would be much more “explosive” than the boxing match between the much smaller Floyd Mayweather and MMA star Conor McGregor in 2017.
Unlike McGregor, however, Ngannou does not appear to be pursuing a pure boxing crossover, saying a bout with Fury would be “a hybrid fight with different type of rules, you know, MMA gloves in the ring, kind of like mix-up. A little different.”
LONDON, ENGLAND – APRIL 23: Tyson Fury celebrates victory as referee Mark Lyson checks on Dillian Whyte after the WBC World Heavyweight title fight between himself and Dillian Whyte at Wembley Stadium on April 23, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Warren Little/Getty Images)
A boxing match in 4-ounce (110 g) MMA gloves would certainly be different to what boxing fans have become accustomed to in recent decades, but it would still be much closer to boxing than MMA — with kicks, knees, elbows, grappling, and submission holds remaining excluded from the ruleset.
The UFC heavyweight champion may face a formidable obstacle to setting up the bout in the form of UFC president Dana White, however, as he seems uninterested in letting the African champion box on the side — not least because a loss outside the UFC could tarnish the prestige of the promotion’s heavyweight championship.
Ngannou believes he can wait out his current contract, which supposedly expires at the end of 2022, and pursue a bout with Fury regardless — but if he is stripped of his UFC title in the meantime his drawing power in a “hybrid fight” may be significantly decreased.
LONDON, ENGLAND – APRIL 23: Dillian Whyte receives oxygen after his WBC World Heavyweight title fight with Tyson Fury at Wembley Stadium on April 23, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)