Of one thing we can be certain as Tyson Fury announces his retirement for the umpteenth time.
As he made that statement, he meant every brief word of it.
And never mind that he was grinning like a Cheshire Cat as he dropped that bombshell as heavily as he floored many of his opponents on his way to winning multiple world heavyweight titles
Whether he will mean it tomorrow, next week. this summer or next year, we know not. Nor, in all probability, does the Gypsy King himself.
As for Anthony Joshua, who was reported to be in negotiations with Fury to bring their long overdue Brit bash to Wembley sometime soon, he has no idea.
Fury’s promoter Frank Warren summed it up most succinctly: ‘Never forget that Tyson is bi-polar. What he says today he means absolutely. If he says something different soon he will mean that just as much.
Tyson Fury announced his retirement from boxing in a 17-second video posted on Instagram
The former heavyweight champion has previously claimed he is stepping away from the ring before returning
‘I haven’t spoken to him yet this time but when we’ve discussed retirement before I’ve always told him he has my support whatever he and his family decide.’
Boxing’s instinctive reaction is to expect that he is being as mischievous as any Traveller can be.
Certainly, at a flicker on Instagram, he upstaged a big media launch in London for the February spectacular in Riyadh starring Daniel Dubois, the British heir apparent to himself and Joshua.
Would he respond to a public outcry for yet another comeback? Well, while he is rich as Croesus already, another £50 million would not go amiss.
But the last words of his statement suggest he might not be happy with his most recent and most generous paymasters.
The Saudi royal family filled his pockets to bulging but delusional resentment of the two points victories awarded there to Oleksandr Usyk which took away the last of his world titles echoed loud when he said: ‘Dick Turpin wore a mask.’
Nevertheless, the punishment he took in those fights and, more weightily, massive knock downs by Deontay Wilder in their preceding trilogy, concerned both Mrs and Mr Fury.
The news comes as Fury had been slated to finally take on Anthony Joshua in an all-British showdown at Wembley
Fury’s wife Paris had previously suggested that his time in the sport could soon come to an end
Paris, the lovely and devoted mother of all their children, had been suggesting time could be up at 36.
Her man has been telling us: ‘Those fights and all the blows that come with me have taken away pieces of me. I think they’ve taken years off my life. ‘
The penny, never mind the 20 stones, may have dropped in the mind of the giant with the most phenomenal shock absorbers and powers of recovery since Muhammad Ali.
Fury somehow rose time and again like Lazarus from his death bed. To victory.
He is also the most agile of all athletes for his hulking 6ft 9in frame.
The courage that required was as vital, albeit less conspicuous, as the outrageous showmanship which captivated audiences around the world
There was always mind-game method to his madness. As well as sheer skill and intelligence, which also went overlooked during his horse play. All of which kept him undefeated until he ran into the high technique and computer brain of Usyk.
His incredible ride from the Morecambe mudflats to the pinnacle of world heavyweight prizefighting galvanised British boxing, whether the public adored him or abhorred him.
The Gypsy King has demonstrated an ability to battle back from adversity not seen since the days of Muhammad Ali
With Tyson Fury there’s never been a dull moment. Hopefully there is one more to come. Against Anthony Joshua. In their last Wembley hurrah.
A farewell party indeed, since neither is the boxer they were. The legs which propelled Fury to threaten pre-Usyk to challenge Lennox Lewis for the throne of all- time best UK heavyweight looked gone in Riyadh. Especially in the second fight when they were carrying all that excess flab.
That’s what 16 years of heavy labour can do to the best of them.
And if there is one factor which might make this a permanent farewell it is the painfully certain knowledge that he would never beat Oleksandr Usyk.
