27 October 2023 , 14:30
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Tyson Fury has admitted that he doesn't even recognise himself when he sees photos and videos from when he hit his highest weight during his lowest moment.
The heavyweight champion was on top of the world after dethroning Wladimir Klitschko in 2015, but struggled with his mental health and substance issues, leading to three years away from the sport. During that time, he ballooned in weight to over 400lb, before turning his life around in pursuit of Deontay Wilder's WBC belt.
And speaking this week ahead of the first of two major Saudi Arabian fights against Francis Ngannou and Oleksandr Usyk, he spoke of how he doesn't even see himself in those old photos. Fury will face former UFC champion Ngannou this weekend, before a touted December 23 date with Usyk for the undisputed heavyweight title.
"It's been a fairytale middle-end of my career," Fury told the Queensberry Promotions YouTube channel. "It started off good and I was on ITV and had nine fights my first year, then it went a little bit drier and drier and drier and the inactivity started, I was out for long periods of time and then it went from bad to worse.
"S*** happens in life and it's a lesson for anybody, no matter what comes at you and how s*** you feel and how you think you're in a dodgy place; you never know what tomorrow will bring. I was out of boxing 30 months, that's a long time and I didn't think I was going to come back at any stage, I was very heavy.
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"I look at myself on the videos and I was thinking 'wow, I'm even amazed how I come back from that, shocking really'." When host Dev Sahni asked if he recognises himself in the footage, he replied: "No, I don't. Obviously I can see it's me but a near-on 30-stone man it's ridiculous isn't it? And that's only the weight issue, the rest of it is an ongoing battle."
Fury's ability to speak openly about his mental health struggles has made him one of the UK's most beloved sport stars in recent years. His return to the ring has seen him become WBC champion, and should he beat Usyk he could end the year as the first undisputed champion of the four-belt era.