By Terence Dooley

An Evening With Tyson Fury event in Birmingham took an unusual turn when the heavyweight world Champion told the assembled fans and press that he eats hedgehogs and bullfrogs.

Fury (25-0, 18 KOs) caused yet more controversy when admitting that he enjoys tucking into the endangered species and that his brother breeds the animals for human consumption.

"I have eaten hedgehog, it's like nothing you've eaten before,” said Fury, speaking to Duncan Wright of The Sun. “Marinate them in honey, put them on a clay tray and bake in the oven.”

Eating hedgehogs is not illegal in the U.K., but, as expected, Fury’s comments earned him a stiff rebuke from the British Hedgehog Preservation Society. “We are very disappointed, hedgehogs are in decline,” was the response from one of their spokespeople. “They need all the help they can get. To talk about cooking them for a snack doesn't help.”

Fury has courted controversy throughout his career. Peter Fury, his trainer and uncle, recently told BoxingScene that his nephew often comes out with outlandish comments to create a media frenzy. However, at the time of writing it is unclear whether his latest statement is tongue-in-cheek or hedgehog in belly.

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