Tyson Fury is one of British boxing’s most famous boxers to grace the sport. The former heavyweight champion has risen in the heavyweight ranks since the start of his career by defeating the likes of Wladimir Klitschko, Derek Chisora, Dillian Whyte, and Deontay Wilder. However, his undefeated streak ended with a loss against Ukraine’s Oleksandr Usyk in February 2024.
Fury’s captivating character, full of arrogance, with his larger-than-life personality and towering figure, has provided boxing with much-needed drama and action in the last few years. As much as his in-ring abilities are famous, his life outside of it has become household news in the world of boxing. Here’s everything you need to know about Tyson Fury, from his personal life to his professional career.
Fury, the WBC Heavyweight Champion of the world, expressed his respect and admiration for fellow British heavyweight Derek Chisora. In 2020, Fury revealed that Chisora was his favorite boxer and mentioned they got along quite well. Despite their heated exchanges in 2011, by December 2022, when they met again at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Fury appreciated Chisora’s willingness to accept the fight and even shared a burger with him post fight.
Fury is the former English, British, and Commonwealth heavyweight champion. “The Gypsy King” cemented his legacy when he dethroned the mighty Wladimir Klitschko in 2016 for the WBA, WBO, IBF, and Ring titles. Fury’s current estimated net worth is over $150 million, and only two other boxers, Anthony Joshua and Canelo Alvarez, have crossed the $100 million mark in career earnings among active boxers on the list.
After clinching the heavyweight title in 2015, Fury’s career took a sharp downturn as he battled depression and substance abuse. Unlike many athletes, Fury has been candid about these challenges, sharing his experiences on several public forums.
He also openly voiced his support to break the stigma that often stops people, especially men, from getting the support they need. Today, Fury uses his platform to champion mental health awareness and advocate for better funding for mental health services.
Tyson Fury and Paris first met in their teenage years at a mutual friend’s wedding, and just three years later they married in November 2008. “The Gypsy King” called her his mentor, and said she’d been through everything with him, the good times and the bad. While Paris Fury may not have a say in Tyson Fury’s boxing career, she definitely has left an affectionate mark on his personal life.
Fury vs. Klitschko was deemed “not the most eye-catching fight” to watch, but the result had everyone definitely floored. Fury defeated Klitschko over 12 rounds by a unanimous decision. This result was considered one of the most significant results in heavyweight boxing history, because it ended the Ukrainian’s decade-long reign in the heavyweight class.
In his interview with The Stomping Ground, Fury credited the success of boxing to HE Turki Alalshikh and the Saudis for bringing back excitement and massive viewership to the sport. Fury highlighted how Alalshikh played a crucial role in making his upcoming fight against Oleksandr Usyk possible.
From the looks of it, Tyson Fury was born to be a fighter. Born on 12th August 1988, 3 months premature, Fury was overly underweight upon birth. His father, John Fury, named him after Mike Tyson, who was the reigning undisputed heavyweight champion at the time.
Tyson’s father, “Gypsy” John Fury, competed as both a bare-knuckle and professional boxer in the 1980s. Tyson’s half-brother, Tommy, made his professional debut in 2018 under Ricky Hatton’s guidance. Tyson is also related to several professional boxers, including Hughie Fury, his uncle, who trained him. His nickname, “Gypsy King,” honors his distant relatives Uriah Burton and Bartley Gorman, both renowned bare-knuckle fighters and “Kings of the Gypsies.”
In an interview before his fight against Ngannou, Tyson Fury wasn’t afraid to spell out his fear of worms. When asked what his biggest fear was, he smiled and said worms were his biggest fear. He also recalled how his brother Shane filled his boots up with worms when they were kids