Tyson Fury plans on hanging up his boxing gloves following his heavyweight title fight with Dillian Whyte later today (Sat., April 23, 2022) live on ESPN+ pay-per-view (PPV) from inside Wembley Stadium in London, England.
Fury, who is just 33, is set to defend his WBC and The Ring heavyweight titles. It will be the first time he’s fighting in front of his home crowd of England since 2018. Fury was originally expected to land fights with either Oleksandr Usyk or Anthony Joshua, but those bookings fell through and led “Gypsy King” into this weekend’s clash with Whyte. It’s not the biggest matchup for Fury’s retirement fight, but it will certainly suffice.
When combat athletes, especially those as prominent as Fury, announce that they are planning to retire it’s difficult to fully believe them. For one reason or another many fighters walk away only to come back a year or two later. It could be to grab a nice payday or settle a score with a rival, but there always seems to be a situation that drags a fighter out of hiding.
Unfortunately for boxing fans, that doesn’t seem to be the case with Fury. The towering heavyweight champion has also operated to the beat of his own drum and is always as honest as he can be. Leading into his farewell fight with Whyte this weekend in London Fury is adamant that this will in fact be his final appearance.
“After this fight, I’m walking away,” Fury recently told ESPN. “A lot of people don’t believe me. I see me dad do an interview the other day, “He ain’t gonna walk away. He can’t live without boxing.’ But that’s where they all underestimate the big GK [Gypsy King], I can live without boxing.
“I always said, ‘When I walk away, I’ll never come back, ever.’”
If Fury does in fact retire he will be regarded as one of the most entertaining heavyweight fighters of all time. His journey from battling depression to the top of the boxing world is something that movies are made out of. Should “Gypsy King” defeat Whyte this weekend and retire with an undefeated record it would be hard to not mention him among the best heavyweights ever.
What do you think, fight fans? Is this the last time we see Fury inside of the boxing ring?
Let’s hear it!
MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE coverage of “Fury vs. Whyte” right HERE. The ESPN+ pay-per-view (PPV) main card begins at 2 p.m. ET, while Fury and Whyte will make their ring walks around 5 p.m. ET.
For more on “Fury vs. Whyte” and other boxing-related events click here.