British heavyweight Tyson Fury has announced his retirement from boxing once again, just a month after losing a rematch to Ukraine’s Oleksandr Usyk.
The 36-year-old made the announcement on Monday in a short Instagram video that featured a cryptic message.
“Hi everybody, I’m going to make this short and sweet. I’d like to announce my retirement from boxing,” Fury said. “It’s been a blast, I’ve loved every single minute of it, and I’m going to end with this: Dick Turpin wore a mask. God bless everybody, see you on the other side.”
The reference to Turpin, an infamous 18th-century English highwayman, left fans puzzled.
Fury’s retirement comes after his unanimous decision loss to Usyk in Saudi Arabia on December 21. In the rematch, Usyk landed 42% of his punches (179 of 423), compared to Fury’s 28% accuracy (144 of 509 punches). Fury had previously admitted to costly mistakes, including excessive showboating, in their first meeting in May, which he lost by split decision.
British fans had hoped Fury’s next bout would be the long-awaited clash with Anthony Joshua, but that now seems unlikely.
Fury has a history of retirement announcements, including one on his 34th birthday in August 2022, only to return to the ring two months later. Earlier in April of that year, he hinted at retiring after knocking out Dillian Whyte before a record crowd at Wembley Stadium but continued fighting.
Since then, Fury secured wins over Derek Chisora and MMA star Francis Ngannou before meeting his match in Usyk.
Fury retires with a professional record of 34-2-1, with 24 knockouts. His only losses came in his bouts against Usyk, while his lone draw was against Deontay Wilder in 2018.
