Tyson Fury’s Unbelievable Press Conference Antics Were His Best Yet

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It’s pretty odd to see Tyson Fury being a topic of controversy in the world of boxing. Oh wait – no, that’s not odd at all.

Even for those of you who aren’t even mild boxing fanatics, you’ve probably heard of Tyson Fury – and probably not for the best reasons. But today was exceptional, sort of. Well, it was certainly a one off.

Meeting to talk about the upcoming Fury v Klitschko rematch in July, the pair and their promoters graced the cameras in Manchester for a much anticipated press conference – especially following last year’s antics when Fury infamously dressed up as Batman.

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Although the madness was certainly not over – and it went off.

Fury took his shirt off, called himself ‘a fat man’, Klitschko was asked by journalists how he’d got away with ‘cheating’ for years, Fury flirted with a journalist, Fury said he ‘hated’ boxing, Klitschko told Fury to ‘fuck off’, Fury said he’s a dancing monkey – and that’s to name but a few of the bizarre happenings this afternoon.

But let’s start at the beginning…

A much larger looking Fury entered the arena surrounded by cheerleaders, who were all clad in Fury merch:

I admit it’s a pretty surreal entrance from Fury, looking more like one of the great bare-knuckle fighters of a time past, than the current heavyweight champion of the world.

So how did the conference start out? Pretty differently. Instead of Fury being the aggressor, he performed a few dance moves before a clearly aggravated Klitschko told Fury to ‘fuck off’, citing the Brit’s alleged views on homophobia and women as an example of why he is not a ‘a champion who represents the sport in the right way’.

But then Fury returned fire and in true Fury fashion said:

Klitschko has found his bollocks! He can make all of his excuses – ‘ooh, my fingernails broke!’ – but he was beaten on his own turf. He was whooped. He landed about four shots in twelve rounds. He is a hall of dogshit fighter in my eyes. If he can’t land a punch on a fat gippo, he must be shit.

When Team Fury rolled up, he knew he couldn’t get away with his cheating antics. When it is fair and square, he can’t win.

The outcome will be different. I will knock him out. No 40-year-old born from his mother can beat Tyson Fury. So there we go.

But the madness persevered, and things only got weirder:

Arguably, the highlight of today’s press conference was the above clip, which shows a far bigger bellied Fury than we have seen in the past, whip off his shirt and proclaim:

Does that look like a fighter’s body. Clearly not. Do I give a fuck? No. Have a look. Fat man. That’s who beat you. Shame on you my friend. Shame on you. You let a fat man beat you.

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As often seems to be the case, his opponent was merely left speechless – or, at least, he was certainly unsure as to what to reply to the gargantuan champ.

At one point in the conference, Fury even went so far as to say:

I don’t even live an athlete’s lifestyle. It’s an absolute disgrace to call me an athlete.

I hate boxing. But I’m just too fucking good at it to stop. I’m making too much money from it to stop.

A lot of people argue that Fury is essentially a fool – however, personally, I believe he’s a very clever individual, and it’s evident that his peculiar antics, and no doubt mind games, haven’t failed him yet.

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Towards the end of the interview, a more subtle and melancholic Fury gave quite a saddening statement of realisation when he said:

I’m a performing monkey. I am a joke. I am made out to be the villain and the outcast. But people like to see it. If I did shit interviews, then nobody tunes in, and none of you get paid. I do it for all of you, so that you all get paid.

But is it all mind-games? When Fury gets his belly out and beats on it, and calls himself a fat man, a joke and a performing monkey, is it all merely a trick to confuse Klitschko into thinking the fight will be a walkover, before Fury surprises him big on the big night?

It certainly worked last time, with Fury destroying the former champion, beating him by a unanimous decision of 116-111, despite having points removed for foul play.

But will it happen again? That’s the question on everyone’s lips…

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