10 things you didn’t know about Tyson Fury!

Happy Birthday to the Gypsy King!

Here are 10 things you didn’t know about the WBC world heavyweight champion Tyson Fury!

1. Born prematurely:

Despite being a heavyweight giant at 6 foot 9 and weighing 265 pounds, Tyson Fury was born 8 weeks premature and thrown into a fight on the first day of his life, weighing just 1 pound.

2. Named after Mike Tyson:

His father, John, named him Tyson after Mike Tyson, who was the heavyweight world champion at the time. John said: “The doctors told me there was not much chance of him living. I had lost two daughters in the same way who had been born prematurely.” He decided on naming him Tyson as he was a fighter and survived the premature birth.

3. Left school when he was just 11:

Most kids are just beginning secondary school in England at the age of 11 but not Tyson Fury. The Gypsy King followed traveller tradition by leaving school and joined his father and three brothers tarmacking roads.

4. Married his childhood sweetheart:

Tyson met his wife Paris at a mutual friend’s wedding when she was 15. They began dating after Paris turned 16 and the pair tied the knot in November 2008 in front of around 400 guests in Paris’ home town of Doncaster.

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5. Fury missed out on 2008 Olympics:

As a junior amateur, Fury lost out on representing Great Britain in the 2008 Olympics because David Price was selected ahead of him. Fury was also beaten by Price in the Senior National Championships in 2006. How the tides have turned.

6. His amateur record was 31-4 (26 KO’s):

As an amateur, Fury won several championships. He won bronze at the AIBA Youth World Boxing Championships in 2006. In May 2007, he won the EU Junior Championship, defeating Istvan Bernath in the final. In July 2007 he won silver at the European Junior Championship, losing to Maxim Babanin in the final. His final accolade was the ABA super-heavyweight title in 2008 defeating Damien Campbell. He turned professional later that year at the age of 20.

7. Fury is the cousin of several professional boxers:

The Fury family prides itself on prize-fighting. Fury is cousins with heavyweights, Hughie Fury and Nathan Gorman. Retired WBO middleweight world champion Andy Lee and light heavyweight contender Hosea Burton.

8. Overcame extreme obesity, drug use, and depression:

After becoming the unified heavyweight world champion, Fury’s world spiraled out of control. He ballooned up in weight reaching almost 30 stone (420 pounds), drinking 100 pints a week, and taking drugs on a daily basis. Fury’s mental state was deteriorating and his depression led to wanting to take his own lift. Fury recalls a voice that prevented him from committing suicide. One day he as in his Ferrari and about to do 200 mph into a bridge but heard a voice that told him to stop, which made him pullover. Fury stated that it was boxing that brought him back his medicine was training. It’s what shaped his mindset to make one of the best comebacks in boxing history. Initially, he didn’t want to box competitively again, instead just do it to keep fit but he fell in love with the sport and now fights actively without the depression or anxiety he once had.

9. Fury donated his £7 million purse to charity:

After his first match against Wilder, Fury donated his entire purse money to charities to build homes for homeless, alcohol, and drug addicts in the United Kingdom. “I did give away my last purse, but I don’t do charity work for a pat on the back,” said Fury. “I do it to help people, but I do not want praise for it, I don’t want to be called a do-gooder.”

10. Wants to make a heavyweight boxer training facility when he retires:

On Hotboxin’ with Mike Tyson, Fury said how we wishes to create a facility purely for heavyweight boxers and train them to reach the top and become champions. “I want to start a heavyweight fight factory and bring in heavyweights from all over the world…in one facility sharpening each other up and take them further to [become] heavyweight champions of the world”