John Fury hopes the long-awaited clash between his son Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua gets cancelled, and he has no plans to attend the bout. The heavyweight rivals will finally meet in Cardiff on Friday, December 11, but Tyson's father will not be present at ringside.
The bout has been demanded by British boxing fans for more than a decade, with the Principality Stadium already sold out and millions of viewers worldwide expected to watch via Netflix. Yet one person who had no desire to see it come to fruition is Tyson's dad, John. He acknowledges that while both fighters are past their peak, they remain powerful forces fully capable of inflicting serious harm on one another.
Warning Over Defeat
Speaking in the upcoming BBC series Rivals, before the fight was confirmed, he warned that defeat would prove devastating for the losing man.
He said: "I hope it never happens. They'll get that much stick, the loser, they won't be able to cope with it.
"Even though these two guys are not at their best they've still got a lot of power and they could still hurt each other, you know. And you just don't want to see either man walk around after being greats [for people] to laugh at, really."
Boycott Confirmed
John, who claimed earlier this year that his relationship with Tyson was "completely destroyed", confirmed he will not be attending the fight, telling Playbook Boxing: "I'll be honest with you, no. I won't be attending.
"Let me tell you, you have more chance of seeing a cow fly than me bothering with it. I don't like the people in it, and I know accidents can happen. I'm not involved, so I don't want to go to the fight.
"I'll be doing what his mother does. I'll wait for somebody to tell me who wins the fight. I don't need validation to go to a boxing match and sit there and be an absolute spare p**** at the wedding."
Matchroom Reaction
Unsurprisingly, Matchroom bosses Barry and Eddie Hearn, who represent Joshua, are thrilled that the bout has finally been confirmed and will take place on home soil, following concerns it might be staged in the United States.
Matchroom president and founder Barry said: "People like me, I've been waiting 10 years for this. I don't have another 10 years! I want to see this fight.
"I would have been devastated if this fight for any reason didn't happen, because why? Why are we in this business?
"Isn't it to create moments and memories that live on? And I will never forget Joshua against [Wladimir] Klitschko. Fortunately, everyone's seen sense."
Speaking in Rivals, which will be available to watch on iPlayer from November 10, Eddie said: "Both these guys have played a huge part in changing the sport forever in this country.
"This is one of the biggest sporting events, if not the biggest, sporting event Britain has ever seen."
Although the event kicks off on Friday night, December 11, the headline bout is set for the early hours of Saturday morning to accommodate audiences across the US.
