John Fury has claimed the only man who would get him in the ring is the legendary Mike Tyson – but warned he will need ‘big boy money’ to face the fighter he named his son after.
John’s son Tyson Fury will lock horns with MMA star Francis Ngannou on October 28 and ‘Iron Mike’ will be in the Cameroonian’s corner. John holds no grudges about his decision and simply wants to face him because it would be a ‘dream come true’ to come up against a man he has idolised for so long.
But he admits he would be ‘endangering his life’ and would need to be compensated accordingly, suggesting Saudi Arabia as a possible destination for such a clash.
Speaking exclusively to Mail Sport, via Freebets, John said: ‘There’s only one man I’m interested in – there’s no one else. If it’s not Mike Tyson, I’m not interested.
‘I’d fight him at the drop of a hat and he knows it. I’m not going to keep banging on about it. Maybe he just doesn’t want the game anymore. Fighting’s my life. I’ll fight anyone but there’s no one else out there for me is there?
John Fury insists Mike Tyson is the only person who would convince him to get in the ring
John, who met Tyson during a podcast filming in June, said it would be a ‘dream’ to face his hero but would want ‘big boy money’
‘At this stage, I want to make my dream come true and fight the man I named my son after. If it happens so be it and if it doesn’t, good luck to him.
‘I’m 58 years old. I’m endangering my life so they’d have to pay me well. It’s got to be a lot. Let’s put it this way – you’ve got to be a big boy and there’s not a lot out there. The only big boys out there are Saudis. They’ll pay the big boy money, won’t they? But if they won’t, that’s it, it’s over. I’ll keep doing what I’m doing. I don’t need training camps and weeks to get fit, I’m ready to go.’
John insisted that if he was given an opportunity to face ‘Iron Mike’, he would not hold back and would be happy to swing punches in the middle of the ring, while also offering to not be paid if he failed to make it past two rounds.
‘Let’s get stripped off, get the gloves on and have a fight in the middle of the ring. He’s an old guy, so am I,’ he said.
He vowed to fight Tyson in the middle of the ring if their showdown was ever confirmed
John said there was no bad blood despite Mike Tyson (L) – who he named his son after – being in Francis Ngannou’s corner for his upcoming fight against Tyson Fury
Fury and Ngannou will lock horns on October 28 in an epic crossover bout in Saudi Arabia
‘Let’s give [fans] some entertainment. If I get knocked out, I get knocked out, but there will be a fight. And let me tell you – if I don’t go past two rounds don’t pay me. Because I’m confident in myself. I can hold that with any man on Earth.’
Previously John, who met Mike Tyson on a podcast in June, has admitted to feeling hurt by Tyson being in Ngannou’s corner for his upcoming fight against his son in Saudi Arabia on October 28, but now he has stressed the move was a ‘business’ decision.
‘They’re obviously paying him a lot of money to do what he’s doing,’ he added. ‘Good luck to Mike Tyson for getting in that position because they’ll be paying him big boy money to be messing with Ngannou.
‘Mike Tyson doesn’t do anything personal. It’s not because he likes Ngannou more than Tyson – it’s rubbish. The man is doing it to get his living, for a pay check. I’d have done the same thing. Let’s not get caught up between business and personal relationships. This is the fight game and it’s dog eat dog.
‘I like Mike Tyson, I always did. But let’s just put feelings to one side. It’s nothing personal. We won’t be any worser friends after the fight. I won’t think anything less of him. It’s just something we can do and we can both benefit from it. So can the public. If the public demands it – let’s get it on.’
John, meanwhile, will be in his other son Tommy’s corner when he comes up against YouTuber KSI in their highly-anticipated fight on Saturday night at the Manchester Arena.
John laughed off KSI’s claims he will knock out his other son Tommy in their grudge match
He has already made headlines by flipping a table at his son’s press conference with KSI in August after being angered by something the internet star said about the Fury clan – and John predicts he will be ‘squawking around the ring like a chicken’ when the pair eventually lock horns.
KSI has boldly predicted he will stop Fury, despite having a lack of experience in facing highly-ranked professionals.
‘It’s nice for him to dream – but he can keep dreaming,’ he added. ‘Good luck to the guy, he’s coming to fight but there’s no way he can beat Tommy. I don’t care who he’s trained with what his mindset’s like, there’s no way in the world he can win.
‘It’s nonsense, ludicrous that he can even think it. One man’s been fighting all his life, messed around with the best fighter in the world, bred to fight. One’s been doing some YouTubing and only been boxing five minutes. How can he win? Come on. Give your head a wobble.
‘He might run round the ring squarking like a chicken and when Tommy catches up to him and knocks him out that’s what’s coming. Let him dream and talk big, enjoy the time because that’s the only time he will be big. On Saturday night you will see the difference between a man who can fight and one who can’t.’