DEFEATED Gipsy King Tyson Fury put on a brave face last night after his first ever boxing defeat — joking he is off to walk the dog and go to the tip.
The heavyweight fighter earned an estimated £80million from the showdown in Saudi Arabia, but lost his title to Ukraine’s Oleksandr Usyk.
Normally cocky Fury admitted: “We punched f*** out of each other for 12 rounds. I’m going to go home, eat some food, drink some beers, have some family time, walk the dog, go to the tip.
“Me and Frank Warren will discuss the future. If there’s going to be another fight — I think they’re talking about October — then we’ll rock and roll.”
Bruised and battered Fury, 35, was whisked to Riyadh airport for the flight home to Manchester.
And he eased his pain by flying home aboard a £34million private jet — a state-of-the art Embraer Lineage 1000E, described as “the pinnacle” of private plane glitz.
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The flying palace is equipped with a huge living area, queen-size bed, white leather seating, two bathrooms with a shower and “wine cellar”.
The chartered flight will have cost around £12,000-an-hour to hire, including transit time and hours spent on the ground awaiting its VIP passenger and his entourage.
Fury is expected to take up his mega-bucks option of an October rematch with Usyk, 37, after he claimed judges were swayed by war sympathies for his Ukrainian opponent.
But he was later revealed to have congratulated Usyk after Saturday’s epic battle — and even pledged to join him on “holiday” in his war-torn nation.
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The 6ft 9in British giant was humbled after taunting his 6ft 3in opponent early in the fight.
He was left reeling by a barrage of blows which nearly KO’d him in Round Nine.
But Fury clearly believed he had done enough to claim a points win and pulled Usyk in for a hug and kissed him on the head as they awaited the judges’ decision.
Audio recordings revealed Fury told Usyk: “I’d like to come to Ukraine with my family and have a holiday with your family and you can come to my house and have a holiday with me.”
And Usyk replied: “No problem, my friend.”
Fury went on to tell him: “Good work Oleksandr. You’re a strong man and a very good boxer.”
Holding his bruised opponent’s head in his hands, Fury added: “Very good, my brother in Christ.”
Usyk replied: “Listen, I started preparing for you when you were boxing in 2008, European champion.” That likely referred to Fury’s time as EU Junior Champ in 2007.
Fury said: “Thank you, my brother. You’re a very good boxer. I love it, I love it. Good moves.
“My brother, we’ll have a beer after this — alcohol-free!”
The beaten Briton also exchanged fist bumps and warm words with members of Usyk’s team, telling them: “Thank you guys — appreciate you all.”
But the two boxers missed out on their post-fight alcohol-free beer after Usyk was taken to hospital for treatment for a suspected broken jaw.
Fury also thanked Prince Turki bin Salman Al Saud — brother of Saudi Arabia’s crown prince Mohammed bin Salman — who is set to stage any re-run of the classic encounter.
He said: “Turki, thank you my brother for putting this on. Look how many people couldn’t put us together, but you made this happen for the world. We gave them a precious fight.
I’m going to go home, drink beer, walk the dog
Fury
“Yeah, we’ll have it again. Show me the money baby! Show Oleksandr the money!”
The judges’ official scorecard sparked controversy among boxing fans, many of who believed the Ukrainian was the clear winner.
Judge Manuel Oliver Palermo, of Spain, awarded Fury the victory, leading one fan to post on X: “To think one judge had Fury winning is ridiculous. But even the disgusting corrupted judges couldn’t deny Usyk smashed Fury.”
The two fighters split a £115million purse for Saturday’s showdown and could earn even more from another showdown this autumn.
But Fury may opt for another big-money Battle of Britain bout against Anthony Joshua, who watched the fight ringside with football great Cristiano Ronaldo.
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Usyk is now the first undisputed Heavyweight Champion of the World since Lennox Lewis in 1999, and the first boxer to achieve the feat this century.
But Tyson may not be able to resist the chance to grab back all four championship belts, despite the huge toll each fight takes on his body.
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
