Tyson Fury certainly hasn’t had the most conventional of boxing careers, nor is he the most conventional person for that matter. But the unpredictability of the heavyweight champion, who once turned up to a press conference dressed as Batman, and his incredible life story, climbing back to the top of the world from some pretty low lows, is perhaps why he has become such a fan favourite over the last few years.
With the charismatic ‘Gypsy King’ claiming that his upcoming bout against mandatory challenger and British rival Dillian Whyte at Wembley on April 23rd, a fight he is heavily tipped to win in the sports betting, could be the last of his incredible career, leaving anticipated bouts against Anthony Joshua and Oleksandr Usyk to the imagination, now seems like the perfect time to reflect on his fighting days thus far.
So, without further ado, read on as we take a look at some of the defining moments in Fury’s career.
2009: John McDermott
While Fury’s unblemished boxing record (31-0-1) is to be admired, it could have been oh-so different for the 33-year-old. In fact, many would argue that he should have had a first loss on his CV after his encounter with John McDermott at the Brentwood Centre Arena in September 2009.
Fury went into the bout as the huge odds-on favourite but failed to impress and many believed that McDermott had done enough to win the fight. But the Gypsy King was awarded a controversial victory on points to crowned the British heavyweight champions, which caused mass outrage and prompted the British Boxing Board of Control to demand a rematch — which Fury won via TKO in the ninth.
2011 & 2014: Derek Chisora
Arguably the first real ask of Fury’s credentials was against Derek Chisora for the British and Commonwealth titles at Wembley Arena in 2011, and the Gypsy King didn’t leave any stones unturned this time — performing admirably against his more seasoned opponent, with a 23-year-old Fury winning via unanimous decision (117-112, 117-112, 118-111).
More experienced, and boasting a record of 23-0, the pair met again at the London ExCel in 2014 and Fury knew that a second victory over ‘Del Boy’ would take him a step closer to Wladimir Klitschko. So, he dominated proceedings again, battering Chisora with a range of punches to the point where his corner threw in the towel in the 10th round.
2015: Wladimir Klitschko
This has to be the fight that defined Fury’s legacy as one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time. Everybody’s opinion of the Gypsy King seemed to change after that November night in Dusseldorf, with nobody giving him a chance against the veteran Ukrainian — who was unbeaten in over 11 years and had defended his belts some 22 times.
But Fury proved the boxing world wrong, getting into his opponent’s head in the build up to fight before simply outboxing Klitschko over the course of the 12 rounds, which at times were messy, to win via unanimous decision (115-112, 115,112, 116-111) and become the WBA, IBF and WBO champion against all the odds.
2018-2021: The Deontay Wilder Trilogy
Having made a stuttering return to the ring, unconvincingly beating Sefer Seferi and Francesco Pianeta in quick succession after almost three years away from sport due to fighting a personal battle, many claimed Fury’s first bout with Deontay Wilder in December 2018 was coming too soon for the Gypsy King.
And when he hit the deck late on following a huge right from the American, it looked set to be game, set and match for Fury. But he somehow managed to get up and salvage a draw at the Staples Center, which left some bemused as they believed he had done enough to win the fight.
The proceeding two fights proved to be much more straightforward for the Brit though, with a dominant performance ending in a seventh round TKO at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in 2020 before Fury once again dispatched of Wilder in style last October — brutally knocking out the Bronze Bomber in the 11th round.
