Tyson Fury talked about the $200 million he has stowed away in his bank account during today’s press conference for his rematch with unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk on December 21st.
Fury (34-1-1, 24 KOs) revealed that he doesn’t care about winning world titles or his legacy. His entire focus is “money” and to make as much as he can before he retires when “the wheels fall off.”
Fury Motivated by Money
Besides the greed element that Fury showed, he appears to be using that as a cover for losing his last fight against Usyk (22-0, 14 KOs) and coming into the rematch as the underdog on December 21st. The 36-year-old Fury is trying to minimize the likelihood of losing the rematch with Usyk by saying his focus is on money, not sport.
By changing the frame and saying it’s just about money, Fury is trying to disguise the fact that he’s athletically not likely to win the rematch against the more technically gifted Usyk. It’s a transparent tactic Fury is using, but it’s not pulling the wool over the eyes of fans about what’s confronting him in this fight. Usyk is expected to beat Fury again, but this time, by a knockout, he will put his career on ice.
“Andy Lee never had $200 million in his bank to make him happy. So what is my goal, and what is my target? All of those things are to make as much money as possible for me. That’s my goal. It’s not a belt. It’s not a legacy. It’s not a boxing fight. It’s to make as much money as possible. To do that, I’ve got to have as much money as I can until the wheels fall off and I’m 50 years old, crippled with a stick, walking down the street. That’s how I’ll be,” said Tyson Fury to Sky Sports during today’s London press conference for his rematch against Oleksandr Usyk on December 21st.
Fury has such a poisonous attitude about why he’s holding on, but obviously, he’s not on the level. Yeah, he wants money, but he cares about his career and is just talking about the cash to give him cover for when he loses the rematch. What’s interesting is how a fighter with so little talent can make so much dough during his career. What on earth is happening?
Fury’s resume is weak, with his best wins coming against 39-year-old Wladimir Klitschko and Deontay Wilder. The rest of Fury’s victories during his career have been against marginal competition, such as Derek Chisora, Dillian Whyte, and Otto Wallin. A young version of Wladimir would have destroyed Fury.
He caught the Ukrainian at the perfect time in his career in 2015 to get the victory, and even then, it was a close fight. When Fury is 39, it would be interesting to see him go up against a 25-year-old top-ten contender. I don’t think it would end well for Fury.
“I’ve had 40 professional fights, and I was in every single one of them for the money. If I wasn’t getting paid, I wouldn’t have done any of them,” said Fury.
The huge money that Fury has made in his career highlights the difference between how much British fighters make compared to the rest of the world. Anthony Joshua and Fury have made massive amounts of dough during their careers despite having marginal resumes. In contrast, fighters with arguably more talent than them, like Usyk, have made nowhere near the same kind of money. The message here is if you want to make a ton of money, move to the UK and get with a well-known promoter.