World heavyweight boxing champion Tyson Fury has his heart set on a fight with fellow British wrestler Drew McIntyre at the “Clash at the Castle” event due to be staged at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium in September. Fury’s boxing career is believed to have drawn to a close. Fury came through a gruelling heavyweight trilogy with Deontay Wilder, who went into the third and final bout at 4/11 favorite with online sportsbook Coral. According to oddschecker, this operator is licensed by the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC). Consequently, their odds are duty bound to be fair and transparent, and Fury’s pre-fight favoritism proved accurate, with his 11th round knockout victory.
Fury then went on to lock horns with fellow Brit Dillian Whyte, comfortably brushing Whyte aside in front of a packed Wembley Stadium in London. During his post-fight media commitments, Fury insisted he was finished with boxing but did not rule out a reappearance on the wrestling scene.
A look back at Fury’s last WWE appearances
In 2019, Fury debuted in the WWE as part of October’s SmackDown event. Fury’s appearance was initially as a fan, during which he stood by the ring and eyeballed Braun Strowman for much of his match. Strowman, who was seemingly thrown by Fury’s aggression towards him, threw one of his opponents – Dolph Ziggler – outside of the ring in the direction of Fury.
Following his entertaining debut, Fury was handed an open mic to appear in the subsequent episode of WWE Raw. During which he called out Strowman once again and insisted that he apologized for his behavior at SmackDown. The pair eventually brawled and had to be pulled apart by fellow wrestlers on-stage.
It didn’t take long for the WWE scene to arrange a match-up between Fury and Browman as part of WWE Crown Jewel. The contracts were signed on October 15 2019, with Fury eventually shocking the wrestling world by defeating Strowman by count-out. Such is the commercial pull of the WWE that Fury reportedly earnt more in fighting Strowman than in any of his previous boxing fights, raking in $15m for his appearance. Although many WWE wrestling stars are only modestly paid, this is further proof that the organization is prepared to cough up the big bucks when it’s needed. Fury and Strowman later settled their feud and eventually teamed up to take on the B-Team of Curtis Axel and Bo Dallas. Fury used the WWE Crown Jewel event as a prime marketing tactic ahead of his fight with Deontay Wilder.
Fury aware that McIntyre has been calling him out
In Fury’s post-fight press conference after his comfortable victory over Dillian Whyte, he told the media not to “rule him out of fighting” at the “Clash at the Castle”. He said that he would be “speaking to Vince [McMahon]” and made it clear he was aware of Drew McIntyre’s trash talk surrounding Fury. He also insisted that he would “knock him out” in the same way that he “did his pal”, Braun Strowman.
The “Clash at the Castle” will be the first time the UK has staged a WWE stadium event in 30 years. Fury insisted he was excited at the prospect of being “back in the centre stage in the UK” without donning his boxing gloves. All of the above makes sense as to why Fury is still embarking on late-night gym sessions to keep himself in peak physical condition. He’ll need to be in good shape to perform and wow the Principality Stadium in the autumn.
Fury is certainly not wedded to being a professional boxer. Within minutes of defeating Dillian Whyte, Fury was calling out UFC heavyweight star Francis Ngannou. The pair have been enjoying some heated banter in recent months and a “hybrid” exhibition fight has been mooted for sometime in 2023.
What makes Fury such an appealing prospect in WWE?
Why is Tyson Fury such a box-office name in the wrestling world? Although it might seem strange to have a heavyweight boxing great calling the shots in WWE, there are many reasons why Fury is a marketing dream for the organization:
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- Fury joins a long list of boxers that moved disciplines into the WWE universe
The crossover between the boxing and wrestling worlds first took place in 1982 when the iconic Hulk Hogan featured in Rocky III. Ever since, there has been a jostling for superiority between the world’s best boxers and wrestlers. Heavyweight superstar “Iron” Mike Tyson was enlisted by the WWE to appear in a bid to fight back against the surge of popularity for WCW. Tyson’s bitter boxing rival Evander Holyfield was even selected to fight Matt Hardy in 2007 as part of “Saturday Night’s Main Event”. - Fury’s charisma and personality is second to none
Fury is one of the most charismatic names in boxing history. The self-proclaimed “Gypsy King”, Fury is part of an Irish Traveller family, many of whom have boxing in their blood. Fury’s rise up the heavyweight ranks saw him make multiple bold claims of achieving boxing notoriety – many of which he has since backed up. Fury was often misunderstood by the British media in the early years of his boxing career. Characterized as bold, brash and arrogant, Fury was simply a man that was supremely confident in his abilities – and rightly so. - He has the frame and physicality to be a WWE giant
Tyson Fury fits right in with some of the giants in WWE history. At 6ft 9”, Fury is an inch taller than his WWE nemesis-turned-pal Braun Strowman. The likes of Kane and Big Show have also been giants of the wrestling industry, standing at 7ft tall. The tallest of all WWE icons was Giant Gonzales, a former basketball star that became a force in the early 1990s WWE.
One thing is for certain, there is still plenty of longevity in the Tyson Fury franchise, whether it’s in the wrestling ring or a boxing ring. Despite his insistence about retiring from professional sport and spending more time with his family, Fury is a warrior in every sense of the word. As a true competitor, he will never shirk from a challenge and there’ll be plenty more put in front of him to tempt him out of his Morecambe Bay home in north-west England.
