Tyson Fury has said many things over the years, often coming out with outlandish, even controversial statements. However, what Fury has just said about his financial situation might just shock many people – if it’s actually true. According to the soon-to-return former heavyweight champion, who spoke with The Daily Record newspaper in Scotland, he is flat broke having given away all his fight purse money to charities and to the homeless.
“To be honest, I’m skint,” Fury told the publication. “I don’t have any money in the bank. I’m on the dole. I’m on a jobseeker’s allowance at the moment. I’m not winding you up – I’m being truthful. Seriously, I don’t make any money out of boxing at all. Don’t feel sorry for me – it’s not a bad thing. I give my promotional team half of the money and I donate the other half to charity or give it to people in need because I don’t think people should make money out of punching other people in the face. I fight because I love to fight.”
So, is Fury being serious, or is the self-styled “Gypsy King” doing exactly what he says he is not, and is “winding us up?” Fury earned a reported £4 million for his last fight, the November 2015 title win he scored over Wladimir Klitschko, yet here is the 29 year old saying he has none of it left. Zero. The great Larry Holmes once stated how any fighter who claims he is not fighting for money is “either stupid or a liar.” Which category, then, does Fury fall in to?
Fury made more headlines this weekend when it was reported how he was looking to purchase a £1.5 million castle in Scotland (“I have a soft spot for Scotland. I get on with everybody,”) says now that “a millionaire friend” is actually going to buy the property for him (“People look after me.”) Fury also claims he will fight “until I’m 50” because he loves the sport so much.
Has any champion ever boxed purely for the love of the game, not for the monetary rewards? Is Fury actually doing so? Fury refers to himself as a Peoples’ Champion, and a man of the people. If he’s doing what he says he is – basically walking up and down streets, giving out his money to the homeless – he sure deserves that distinction.
Fury though, if he ever fights Anthony Joshua (in a fight that both fighters, along with the entire British nation, want) stands to pick up anywhere from £30 mil to £50 million. That, fight fans, is an incredible amount of dough to give away!
