Tyson Fury named after boxing legend Mike Tyson, his father John Fury explains why

When Tyson Fury was born on August 12, 1988, Mike Tyson was ruling the heavyweight division. Back then it was crazy to think that Fury would ever follow Mike’s footsteps as he was born three months premature and weighed just 1lb (around 450g). According to his father John Fury, the young Gypsy King had a very slim chance of survival, but he proved the doctors wrong.

John Fury said that when doctors gave in the sad news about Tyson after his birth, he told the doctors that his son will survive and will go on to become one of the greatest boxers of all time. “He won’t be small, I said he’ll be nearly 7ft tall, 20 stone, the next heavyweight champion of the world,” he told the doctors. John was proved correct as the Gypsy King defeated death before going on to become a boxer, just like his father and his namesake Mike Tyson.

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When asked why he kept his older son’s name, Tyson, John Fury told ITV that the name was fitting for him as “he’s fought hard to become a person living in this world”. He said Mike Tyson was also ruling the sport at that point and he wanted his son to do the same after growing up. “Tyson Luke Fury – that’s his name,” John Fury told his wife and family at the hospital.

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John Fury’s dream came true

Not just Tyson Fury cheated death, he also went on to become the heavyweight champion, just like his father predicted. Tyson Fury is currently undefeated in the sport (30-0) and recently won the WBC title from Deontay Wilder in February 2020. Though his next opponent is yet to be confirmed, he’s expected to fight unified champion Anthony Joshua in the future, with the bout being labelled the ‘biggest bout’ in British boxing history.

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Mike Tyson on Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua

Over the years, The Gypsy King has earned the respect of his idol Mike Tyson, who recently called Fury a “messiah”. While talking to Eddie Hearn on the ‘No Passion, No Point’ podcast the 54-year-old took Tyson’s side when asked to predict Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua. Mike Tyson hailed AJ as a “masterful puncher,” but claimed that the unified champion is too predictable to beat his fellow Briton.

“He’s a masterful puncher but you can see his punches coming. That’s just a recipe for a disaster when fighting Tyson Fury telegraphing your punches to a guy who’s 6ft 7ins,” he added.

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