Tyson Fury came extremely close to dying as details revealed ahead of Francis Ngannou showdown
Tyson Fury nearly died as a baby before his brilliant boxing career
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Ahead of Tyson Fury's fight with Francis Ngannou on Saturday night, John Fury has revealed his son came extremely close to dying as a baby.
The 'Gypsy King' is considered one of the best boxers Britain has ever produced.
He has won 33 of his 34 career fights so far, with victories over Deontay Wilder and Wladimir Klitschko particularly memorable.
However, while he comes from a fighting family, his excellent career has never been guaranteed.
Tyson Fury is currently preparing for his boxing showdown with Francis Ngannou
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As a baby, Fury was born prematurely.
He was born weighing just 1lb - something that seems staggering given he now weighs close to 269lb instead.
And his father John, writing in a new book serialised by The Sun, has now revealed he nearly 'didn't make it'.
“The night that Tyson was born is something I’ll never forget," he wrote.
"It was August, and the baby was due in seven weeks’ time.
"My wife Amber and I had had problems with previous births.
"Hearing that she had gone into labour, I left work and went straight to Wythenshawe Hospital in Manchester.
"It was a foul night of thunder and lightning, rain pouring down as if it was the end of the world.
"Again, there were complications for my lad. Tyson had been born massively premature and weighed only 1lb — small enough to fit into the palm of my hand.
"The doctors said he wouldn’t make it, but I saw something completely different — a little warrior with a glint in his eye and his fist held up, as if he was ready to take on the world.
"I said to the doctor: 'That boy is special, he is going to live and he’s going to be almost 7ft tall, weigh 20st, and one day he’s going to be the heavyweight champion of the world, mark my words.'
"When a gypsy gets a funny feeling in his stomach, you should always listen to them — the chances are they’ll be right."
John says, however, that Fury's early years were full of problems - and he even accidentally broke his own son's leg.
"As Tyson grew up, there were problems for the first four years," he added.
"He kept overheating and suffering delusions.
"He would have terrifying hallucinations that lions, monsters and demons were trying to eat him.
"Amber and I would pack him in ice and rush him to hospital. I started to take him outside for the natural medicine of fresh air.
"Once, I took him to a golf course. I was mucking around with a golf club when the president of the club appeared in the distance.
"He started shouting and walking towards me, so I picked up Tyson and legged it.
"I tried to jump over a ditch but the bank gave way beneath me and I landed with all my 20st on my baby son’s leg and snapped it.
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John Fury is proud of Tyson Fury and everything he's achieved
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"It sounded like a dry stick being broken. I took him home, he was shaking and sobbing in my arms."
Fury recovered from that injury, even if his father John was left doubting whether he was good enough for his child.
And, at the age of 11, he took up boxing.
John was initially reluctant for his son to follow in his footsteps.
But he's now hailed Fury for dedicating himself to the sport and silencing any doubters in the process.
Tyson Fury snapped during his younger years
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"He was 11 years old when he decided he wanted to take up boxing," he writes.
"Me, I didn’t want him to go down that route, so I gave him no encouragement whatsoever.
"But he was determined to do it and he found an amateur gym on the other side of Wythenshawe.
"When he went to school in Styal, Cheshire, he was huge compared to the other boys in his class.
"He would often get taunted by older boys, but the difference between Tyson and me was that he learned self-control and discipline at an early age, and he was better at controlling his red mist.”