Tyson Fury has shocked the boxing world by announcing his immediate retirement from boxing.
Fury had a 2024 that he may wish to forget, after coming up short in his bid to become undisputed heavyweight champion when he lost to Oleksandr Usyk in May, before then suffering a defeat in the rematch when the two men met again in December.
While it may have seen Fury suffer the first two defeats of his professional career, all signs pointed towards a fight finally being made between ‘The Gypsy King’ and his long-term British rival Anthony Joshua.
Fury and Joshua have been linked with one another for over a decade, and while a fight in 2025 wouldn’t have carried the same glamour as it once did several years ago, it is still a clash that many boxing fans would love to see.
If Fury’s latest announcement is to be believed though, it won’t be happening, after he revealed on social media that he is hanging up the gloves and walking away from boxing.
“Hi everybody. I’m going to make this short and sweet. I’d like to announce my retirement from boxing. It’s been a blast, I’ve loved every single minute of it, and I’m going to end with this: Dick Turpin wore a mask. God bless everybody, see you on the other side. Get up.”
Matchroom Boxing chief Eddie Hearn is the promoter of Joshua, and he needed just three words to give his immediate reaction to Fury’s retirement.
“I doubt it.”
Hearn then explained why he doesn’t think the retirement may be serious.
“It’s always best to go into retirement to make sure someone pays you to come out of retirement. I just think if I was looking for the right deal I’d go into retirement too. It’s a natural play, but maybe that’s his lot. I don’t know him well enough to comment really.
“If you haven’t got the heart for it anymore and don’t want to compete anymore, retirement is the best option. Disappointing for British fight fans because we’ve got the chance to make the biggest fight in boxing. If that is the last we see of him he’s had a great career.
“He’s the man to make his own decisions and like I said, it’s not the kind of sport to play in if your heart isn’t in it anymore. If his heart’s not in it it’s the right decision for him. Hopefully it’s not the case and we get to see the AJ fight, if not we wish him all the best.”
It isn’t the first time that Fury has announced his retirement only to make a U-turn and continue boxing, so the hope of seeing him take on Joshua may not be over just yet.
