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Agence France-Presse

Tyson Fury will defend his WBC heavyweight title in front of a British record boxing crowd of 94,000 at Wembley on Saturday as Dillian Whyte finally gets his shot at becoming a world champion.
Fury claims his first fight on home soil since 2018 will be his last before retirement.
There have been suggestions Fury would attempt to unify the heavyweight division against the winner of a rematch between Oleksandr Usyk and Anthony Joshua.
But the 33-year-old wants to bow out in style with a successful title defence against Whyte.

“[I’m a] two-time undisputed champion, 150 million in the bank, nothing to prove to nobody,” said Fury last month when he promised to be “fully retired after the fight”.
Fury is the strong favourite to stretch his unbeaten record to 33 bouts, but the British fighter said his compatriot and former sparring partner deserved respect.
“He’s a good fighter,” said Fury at Wednesday’s pre-fight press conference. “A good, strong, solid man. He has good punch with good power – he’s knocked out a lot of men.
“He’s definitely a man who needs a lot of respect and that’s what I’ve given him by my training camp. I’ve trained as hard for Dillian as I have for [Deontay] Wilder, [Wladimir] Klitschko or anybody.
“I see the odds and laugh a bit because they’re coming from people who don’t know anything about boxing.
“This is heavyweight boxing. Anyone can win with one punch. If I’m not on my ‘A’ game, this guy will knock my head right off my shoulders.”
Fury’s fight week has been dogged by questions over his connections to alleged crime boss Daniel Kinahan.
Fury has previously mentioned Kinahan, who was recently hit with worldwide financial sanctions by the US government, as a “key adviser”.
Dubai-based Kinahan, who has always denied any wrongdoing, is alleged to be one of the leaders of a cartel the US authorities accuse of smuggling drugs, money laundering and violence.
MTK Global, the boxing company founded by Kinahan, announced this week that it is ceasing operations.
“Has it been a distraction? Not really,” said Fury when pressed on his current relationship with Kinahan. “It’s got nowt to do with me, has it?”
Whyte, who boasts a 28-2 record, has plenty to prove after feeling unfairly passed over by Fury when he fought Wilder three times.
The 34-year-old is also unhappy at the 80-20 split in Fury’s favour of a US$41 million (£30 million) purse.
Mike Tyson repeatedly punches passenger on US plane, video shows
Jamaica-born Whyte moved to the UK with his family when he was 12, fathered the first of his three children a year later and was shot and stabbed after being drawn into London gang culture in his youth.
“If I wasn’t a boxer, I’d probably be dead or in prison,” he told The Guardian in 2020.
Now he believes he can be the man to finally beat Fury.
“That’s the great thing about me. I’ll find a way to survive, I’ll find a way to get to where I need to get to,” Whyte said.
“I still believe that anybody I touch to the head or body can get knocked out.”


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Boxing

Tyson Fury wary of ‘good fighter’ Dillian Whyte ahead of WBC heavyweight title bout at Wembley

Tyson Fury (left) and Dillian Whyte go head to head during their weigh-in before the clash at Wembley. Photo: Action Images via Reuters

Tyson Fury has claimed that Saturday’s title defence could be his last fight. Photo: EPA-EFE

Tyson Fury blasts ‘soft’ Dillian Whyte for no-showing press conference, and says he will ‘fully retire’ after title fight

British boxer Tyson Fury attends a press conference at Wembley Stadium for his fight against Dillian Whyte – who no-showed the event. Photo: John Walton/PA Wire/dpa

Tyson Fury speaks to the media at press conference at Wembley Stadium. Fury is set to have a match against Dillian Whyte on April 23, 2022. Photo: John Walton/PA Wire/dpa

Tyson Fury knocks out Deontay Wilder in heavyweight trilogy fight

Tyson Fury lands a jab on Deontay Wilder in their heavyweight championship fight. Photo: AP

Tyson Fury awaits as Anthony Joshua KOs Kubrat Pulev to retain heavyweight belts

World heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua celebrates after beating Bulgaria’s Kubrat Pulev in London. Photo: AP

World Heavyweight boxing champion Britain's Anthony Joshua lands a blow on challenger Bulgaria's Kubrat Pulev during their Heavyweight title fight at Wembley Arena in London Saturday, Dec. 12, 2020. (Andrew Couldridge/Pool via AP)

World Heavyweight boxing champion Britain's Anthony Joshua, goes on the attack against challenger Bulgaria's Kubrat Pulev during their Heavyweight title fight at Wembley Arena in London Saturday, Dec. 12, 2020. (Andrew Couldridge/Pool via AP)

Sport


The champion has claimed that Saturday’s all-British bout, his first in the UK since 2018, will be his last before he is ‘fully retired’
But he says Whyte, his former sparring partner, ‘needs a lot of respect’ and prompted him to train as hard as he did to face Deontay Wilder or Wladimir Klitschko



The champion says his fellow Briton ‘needs a lot of respect’ and has prompted him to train as hard as he did to face Deontay Wilder or Wladimir Klitschko.


Tyson Fury