Tyson Fury's father wants to fight boxing legend before Francis Ngannou showdown
John Fury has spoken out ahead of Tyson Fury's showdown with Francis Ngannou
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Tyson Fury's father, John, wants to fight Mike Tyson on the undercard prior to his son's showdown with Francis Ngannou in Saudi Arabia next month.
The 'Gypsy King' will be returning to the ring for the first time since his victory over Derek Chisora in December last year.
He will go up against Ngannou, who has switched UFC for boxing as he looks to make his mark in his new sport.
The 37-year-old is being trained by Tyson, who is regarded as one of the best boxers of all time.
Boxing icon Mike Tyson is 'loved' by John Fury - who named Tyson after him
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And John Fury has now revealed he'd relish the chance to go up against the 57-year-old, despite admitting he 'loves' the retired star.
“Why wouldn’t I not speak to Mike Tyson?" he told Seconds Out via Freebets.com.
"I love the guy, I named my son after him.
“And if he wants to fight me on the undercard, he can, no problem.
"I’m a fighting man, I’m old but I’m a fighting man. He’s a fighting man. He’s old.
"We’re two geriatrics. If he wants to fight me and I want to fight him, which I do, I’ve made it quite clear, we can do it.
"I’ve been knocked out before, doesn’t make any difference to me, as long as we can entertain the paying public and put smiles on their faces, that’ll do me.”
John plans to attend the match in Saudi, admitting he's so excited he'd 'swim there' in order to watch his son do battle.
“Let me tell you, I’ll swim there. If there are no planes available I’ll swim, and I can’t swim," he joked.
"I’ll get two armbands and I’ll set off today. I’ll be in Saudi don’t worry about that."
John has also rubbished suggestions that the fight will be straightforward for his son, too.
"I hold him in the highest esteem and the highest regard," the 59-year-old said of Ngannou, who is a former UFC champion.
"He's world champion at his game, he's taking on the best in the world, taking it seriously and I do believe he's going to bring the smoke.
"I'm expecting Tyson to come out with a broken leg or a broken arm.
"He's not going to come out unscathed and I'm glad they're paying him well because if they weren't paying him well I wouldn't put him in against Francis Ngannou.
"He's going to get knocked about, Tyson, and he knows that.
"Exhibition my backside, they're going to kill each other them pair."
Fury will be the strong favourite to reign supreme, especially given his record in recent years.
The 35-year-old was too strong for Chisora last year, securing victory at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London.
Before that, the Brit powered his way to victory over compatriot Dillian Whyte.
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Tyson Fury is currently preparing for his blockbuster showdown with Francis Ngannou in Saudi Arabia
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And Fury ended his trilogy with Deontay Wilder on a high note when the pair battled in 2021.
The 'Gypsy King' feels confident. Writing on social media last month, he messaged Ngannou and said: "It doesn’t matter if you’re being trained by the great Mike Tyson, Muhammad Ali of Bruce Lee, you’re going to get KO’d in the Kingdom."
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