WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury admitted that the uppercut that finished Dillian Whyte in the sixth round was a punch he had been looking for. He said he set the punch up by throwing a series of one-twos that Whyte partially blocked, but by expecting the one-two, Whyte’s guard was coming upwards, leaving space for the shot underneath.
“I said before the fight in the dressing room that this would be an exceptional performance, I could feel it. My feet were good, my jab was good, I jabbed the head off him," Fury said.
“The one thing that amazed me was I clipped the Body Snatcher with a left hook to the body. I said ‘you’re hurt Body Snatcher!’ And he said ‘yeah’, so that was funny. Am I getting better? Yeah, I’m getting better. "
Fury would then claim he was being continuously fouled by Whyte in the contest.
“He tried to make it rough fair play to him. He was trying to manhandle me in there, but have you ever tried wrestling with a dinosaur before? I’m like a T-Rex in there, 270 pounds, it’s difficult, especially when you’re shorter and not as quick," Fury said.
“He tried to hit me with his elbows, head, he tried a Wladimir Klitschko on me. He was trying everything and when you try and cheat in a fight, you always come off second best because he tried to nut me and got cut.
“I ain’t complaining, Dillian did his thing. He made millions of dollars tonight, thanks to me. He didn’t just fight the world champion tonight, you can’t deny it and I’m the best heavyweight there’s ever been.
“There’s never been one who can beat me. Do you know why? I’ve got a 6ft 9ins frame, 270lbs weight, move like a middleweight, hit like a thunderstorm and can take a punch. I’ve got balls like King Kong, the heart of a lion, the mindset of the Wizard of Oz.”
But while Fury said his boxing career was over, he said that he would not disappear.
“I want to have fun, I’m an entertainer, it’s what I do best,” he said. “I want to entertain people. Big Francis Ngannou was here today and he’s on my hitlist for an exhibition fight however he wants it, in a cage, in a boxing ring, boxing gloves, UFC gloves, we can make it happen.
“He’s a monster of a guy, I’m a monster of a guy, it would be a clash of the Titans for sure.”
He also said a return to WWE, where he featured in Saudi Arabia in 2019, was possible.
“You might see me at Summer Slam,” he said. “I’d love to be at Cardiff, I’d love to be back centerstage in the UK. I enjoyed it last time in Saudi Arabia.”
Ron Lewis is a senior writer for BoxingScene. He was Boxing Correspondent for The Times, where he worked from 2001-2019 - covering four Olympic Games and numerous world title fights across the globe. He has written about boxing for a wide variety of publications worldwide since the 1980s.
