Tyson Fury remains boxing champion. For the third time he defeats Dereck Chisora. But Chisora was only an awkward duel. Now it should really crack.
When he was finished with Dereck Chisora, who was 19 centimeters shorter, WBC boxing world champion Tyson Fury ordered four-time champion Oleksandr Usyk into the ring with pithy words.
“Where’s the rabbit?” he yelled at the Ukrainian who had been watching ringside from the front row. “Usyk, you’re next, little bodybuilding dwarf,” sneered the 2.06 meter tall Fury, reminding everyone that he had already eliminated a Ukrainian before. In 2015 he had dethroned the then world champion Wladimir Klitschko. “Let’s do it,” Fury yelled. WBA, WBO, IBF and IBO champion Usyk, known as the top heavyweight technician, stared the Brit in the eye and smiled.
Stadium fight in front of almost 60,000 spectators
Minutes earlier, Fury, undefeated in 34 fights, had picked up easily earned Christmas bonuses. Guaranteed 24.5 million euros plus the share of the TV income of an estimated ten million euros flow into his account through the expected win against compatriot Chisora. The best thing about the title fight was the setting and the atmosphere. 59,769 spectators in the stadium of the first division soccer team Tottenham Hotspur sang “Sweet Caroline” and “It’s coming home” before the duel with the overwhelmed Chisora.
At four degrees Celsius it was an achievement to defy the damp cold on Saturday night. At least the audience didn’t have to endure the scheduled twelve rounds. In the tenth round, the Scottish referee Victor Loughlin showed mercy and stopped the unequal fight. Even in the third attempt, the 38-year-old Chisora could not stand up to the four-year-old giant Fury. In 2011 (unanimous point defeat) and 2014 (also in the tenth round) Chisora, who once slapped Vitali Klitschko and spat on Wladimir Klitschko, had no chance.
Considering that Fury announced his umpteenth resignation a few months ago, he made a surprising number of plans after the win. He wants to beat Usyk next year just like his compatriots Anthony Joshua and Joe Joyce. Why? Only then are fighting exchanges around 100 million euros in it. Chisora was just small change.
Fury’s ploy works
The man, whose account balance is estimated at 150 million euros, is one of the smartest businessmen in sport. Get into scandals, insult your opponents, tell a lot of stupid things, announce retirements from time to time, but deliver top performances in the ring – Fury’s trick works. “He markets himself great. He’s a good boxer and dominates the show,” says Thomas Pütz, President of the Association of German Professional Boxers (BDB).
taste? Ahead of the recent duel with Chisora, Fury reported six weeks of abstinence from sex in order to get in the ring “with a loaded gun”. Two and a half years earlier he had lectured on the opposite tactic: Before the second fight against American Deontay Wilder, he wanted to have masturbated seven times a day to drive his testosterone levels through the roof.
Privately, Fury lives happily with his wife Paris and their six children, publicly he locates the field of activity of women between the kitchen and bed. He doesn’t take himself seriously. “I’m a fat, lazy pig,” he says. Some love him for his gaffes and fairy tales, others hate him. He has ticket buyers in both camps – and the trend is rising.
That’s why Fury has declared 2023 to be the year of checkout. Champion Usyk, former world champion Joshua, undefeated Joyce and their promoters will not be able to help themselves. Only with Fury does the ruble roll. But first he will probably consider resigning.
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