'I'm done' – Tyson Fury reiterates retirement pledge after successful WBC title defence

By Sports Desk April 27, 2022

Tyson Fury declared "I'm done" and reaffirmed his intentions to retire from boxing after successfully defending his WBC heavyweight belt against Dillian Whyte.

The undefeated Fury delivered a brutal sixth-round knockout of Whyte at Wembley Stadium on Saturday, and either side of the fight suggested he will call it a day on his career following the all-British bout.

Fury, 33, speaking on Piers Morgan's show 'Uncensored' on Talk TV, reiterated his desire to retire from boxing, despite speculation surrounding potential clashes with Anthony Joshua and Oleksandr Usyk.

Beaten challenger Whyte, who did not feel the referee should have stopped the bout, is also hungry for another shot at Fury.

"This is the truth, the gospel truth, nothing but the truth – I'm done," Fury said.

"Every good dog has its day and like the great Roman leader said, 'there will always be somebody else to fight'.

"When is enough, enough? I'm happy, I'm healthy, I've still got my brains and I can still talk. I've got a beautiful wife, six kids, I've got umpteen belts, plenty of money, success, fame, glory – what more am I doing it for?

"Boxing is a very dangerous sport. You can be taken out with one punch as we've seen on Saturday and it's one unlucky blow and you may not get up off that canvas.

"I'm quitting while I'm ahead, I'm undefeated and only the second man in history to retire as undefeated heavyweight champion.

"I'm very, very happy, very content in my heart with what I've done and what I've achieved."

Fury, should his claims prove to be true, will join American great Rocky Marciano as the only heavyweight champions to retire with an unbeaten record.

Questions persist whether Fury will face UFC star Francis Ngannou in a boxing-mixed martial arts exhibition event or reappear in professional wrestling after his WWE appearances in 2019.

Yet even if offered the mouth-watering prospect of fighting fellow Brit Joshua or Ukrainian Usyk – who are set to face off in a rematch for the IBF, WBO and WBA-Super belts – Fury insists he will not return to professional boxing.

"It's not worth it," he said. "I've got four young kids to raise and two older ones, I've been away for the last 10 years all over the world travelling for boxing.

"When do I get time to be a father, a husband, a brother, a son? I need this personal time. The fans will always want more, they're always baying for more blood, but at the end of the day I don't have any more to give.

"I've given everything I've got, I've been a professional for 14 years and been boxing for over 20 years.

"Every good dog has its day in the sun and my time is to go out on a high. I always said I wanted to walk away on top of the sport and do it on my terms and didn't want to be the person who said I should have been retired two years ago or whatever.

"They will not forget 'The Gypsy King' in a hurry – and no amount of material assets or money will make me come back out of retirement because I'm very happy."

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