Former WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury is out looking for revenge in his upcoming fight against Oleksandr Usyk. The pair went toe-to-toe last May, which produced the first undisputed heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis in 1999. While ‘The Cat’ got all the glory, Fury was handed his first-ever professional career loss. 

Many in the boxing community blamed a portion of the loss on Fury’s father John Fury because of the chaos that one man had created in the corner during the fight. People claimed that John’s screams may have confused Fury, leaving him scatterbrained during the fight. This resulted in announcements revealing Big John won’t be part of the corner team this time around. 

With mere hours left in the fight, one of UFC’s greatest trash-talkers, Chael Sonnen, the man who trash-talked his way into a title fight against Anderson Silva, has tried to defend John Fury and his actions in the lead-up to the previous fight against Usyk. “Tyson Fury has left behind the old man…,” Sonnen said. 

“He’s a drinker but I haven’t seen evidence that he’s a drunk…,” Sonnen added. “I haven’t heard evidence like the old man goes out on a nightly basis and ties one on or even if he’s at home alone he ties one on.” Notably, John Fury’s antics before his sons’ fights have been on display for fans to watch. 

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Sonnen suggested the potential reason behind John’s absence in the rematch is because he is no longer comfortable causing his usual antics. Explaining Fury Sr’s newfound reluctance to be the center of attention, Sonnen stated, “I do have fact and evidence that when he goes out to perform because he is not comfortable ripping his shirt off and screaming at kids half his age, he’s not comfortable pounding his chest…”

Before the first fight between Usyk and Fury in May, John had headbutted a member of Usyk’s team, which left Tyson Fury’s father bleeding from his forehead. Regardless, Sonnen feels that John does such things to put on a show, which will create interest and bring eyes to his sons’ fights. “He just knows the importance and the success that those things can bring to his sons,” Sonnen explained.

“He’s just trying to serve his sons. So in those occasions, many times he’ll have some shots before he goes into the performance,” Sonnen claimed in his YouTube video. While Sonnen tries to justify John Fury’s actions, Tyson Fury has shared an update on his relationship with his father in the leadup to the rematch. 

Tyson Fury says he hasn’t spoken to father John Fury before the Oleksandr Usyk rematch

Tyson Fury has revealed he hasn’t spoken to his father, John Fury, in the lead-up to his highly anticipated rematch with Oleksandr Usyk. ‘The Gypsy King,’ who has spent three months in isolation at a Malta training camp, explained his intense focus on clinching the WBA, WBO, and WBC heavyweight titles.

“Like I say, I’ve not spoken to anybody,” Tyson Fury revealed. “Shane’s been with me the whole camp… Hughie came over two weeks ago. And that’s it. I’ve not spoken to anybody.” John Fury, who caused controversy during the first fight’s build-up, won’t be in his son’s corner this time around. Instead, Andy Lee and SugarHill Steward will take full charge of his corner.

That being said, it appears Tyson Fury is totally keyed in on defeating Oleksandr Usyk, and unlike the first fight, John Fury won’t be in his corner. However, the question is, was Tyson Fury’s first loss really John’s fault?