When the media ran riot with that photograph of Tyson Fury and Ricky Hatton on November 23, 2017, few could have imagined that Fury would be challenging for the WBC heavyweight title one year later almost to the day.
It looked like the all-too-familiar case of a supremely talented boxer hanging up his gloves too soon, content with indulgement and the millions he’d already earned.
Mental health issues appeared to have forced Fury into a premature retirement but ‘The Gypsy King’ refused to allow his legacy be defined by problems outside his control.
Fury attached himself to unheralded trainer Ben Davison, committed himself to a ketogenic diet and began a dedicated training regime which saw him transform from an unmotivated, overweight former fighter into a determined contender for one of the most coveted prizes in sport.
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On Friday afternoon in Los Angeles, Fury weighed in at 256.5bs, just 11lbs over his career lowest 245lbs, which he carried into his fifth round TKO victory over Martin Rogan in 2012.
Defending champion Deontay Wilder, meanwhile, weighed in significantly lighter at 212.5lbs.
Fury, standing at 6ft 9in tall, will enjoy a significant size advantage over ‘The Bronze Bomber’, who has knocked out every single opponent with whom he’s been matched up and is a marginal favourite according to bookmakers.
LET’S GO! Undefeated champ @BronzeBomber at a ready 212.5lbs and @Tyson_Fury 256.5lbs for the WBC Heavyweight strap 👑
Watch ⚖️ LIVE: https://t.co/pzFxz4NQ17#WilderFury TOMORROW 9PM ET: https://t.co/qz57cYneJO pic.twitter.com/1BGrWxwm0r
— SHOWTIME Boxing (@ShowtimeBoxing) November 30, 2018
“I just trained on a daily basis for a long time and ate sensibly and clean,” Fury explained in the build-up to this weekend’s clash.
“Before I was doing a lot of long running and long boxing work, like 12-15 rounds on the pads. When I was losing the weight I was doing shorter, explosive stuff, doing more interval training.
“My diet was the most important thing, you can train like a Trojan warrior but not eat right and take three steps forward and two and a half back.”
