Shane Fury, brother of WBC champion Tyson, has opened up on watching ‘The Gypsy King’ battle back from his mental health struggles to rule the world. In an exclusive interview with the Betfred Lightweight Boxing Show, Fury spoke about his brother’s miracle comeback, possible fights with Anthony Joshua and Oleksandr Usyk and how he thinks would even dominate “f**king snooker”.
“I believe Tyson can beat anyone and do anything. If he took up f**king snooker playing, he'd be the best. That's in our mindset, because he's our God. Not our God. But we’d put him on a plaque that much.” The awe of a brother to an older sibling, that unshakeable confidence the younger man has for his elder, never wavered for Shane, even as scaled as high as 27 stone in the throes of mental health issues. “It was a sad moment to see him go that big, and to be the way he was. But we didn't understand what was going on with his mental health. With his mind. As soon as he wanted to come back, there's no worries. He could have been out of the ring ‘til now and he could have come back.“
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Come back, Tyson did. ‘The Gypsy King’ re-emerged on the global stage in a stunning draw with Deontay Wilder. Shane recalls watching his brother rise from the canvas in one of modern boxing’s most breathtaking moments.
“I thought I was gonna jump in the ring and see if my brother was all right. But with him, listen. He gets back up and bangs his gloves together and has a go. Tyson does what he does four times a week with four guys at the ring frothing from the mouth, wanting to knock him out to make a name for themselves. He does that four times a week for ten rounds each time.”
While the pair are tight-knit, the younger Fury does not agree with everything that comes out of Tyson’s mouth. Even Shane shared the boxing world’s scepticism when his brother “retired” in the wake of his April win over Dillian Whyte. “I didn't (believe it) no. Tyson, next time he does come out with that bullshit retirement, let him be retired. We don't want to hear none of that.”
Shane elaborated on what he thinks his brother needs to do before walking away from the sport permanently. It’s a short list, with just two or three fights on it. “I would like him to fight (Anthony) Joshua now and fight [Oleksandr] Usyk. Probably rematch Usyk and see you later, because he's completed the game.”
So how does Fury see those fights playing out? Unsurprisingly, he thinks Tyson would come through them with his unbeaten record intact. “Styles make fights and Joshua's made to measure for Tyson in our minds, and he will look sensational. People (will) be saying he's the greatest heavyweight in the world, in history once he fights Joshua. Joshua's made to measure for Tyson and he will destroy him. There will be no boxing match.”
On Usyk, Shane kept it short and sweet. “Tyson will win, but there’ll be a rematch, in these big fights I believe there'll be rematches. Too much money at stake.” Once again, there is that unshakeable belief from younger to elder brother.
One fighter Shane warns we will not be seeing Tyson face is Joseph Parker. The Fury family are close with the Kiwi, who faces Joe Joyce for the vacant interim WBO heavyweight title on Saturday. It is a championship that nets the winner a shot at the main WBO belt, but if Fury wins that gold from Usyk, don’t expect him to face Parker. “What'll happen is Tyson will win the unification. Give the belt up and give it to Parker Because there's no way them two (are) going to fight. Joe Parker's a very close person to us, but for Tyson, he's like a close cousin.”
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