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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Ben Davies

Mike Tyson agreed to John Fury exhibition fight in meeting at Jake Paul defeat

John Fury has claimed boxing legend Mike Tyson agreed to fight him in an exhibition when the pair met in Saudi Arabia.

Boxing legend Tyson travelled to the Middle East in February to watch YouTube star Jake Paul in his latest fight against bitter rival Tommy Fury. The British star picked up the win by split decision in front of the heavyweight legend, with brother Tyson also in the crowd who was named after the former undisputed champion.

The famous siblings' father John has made it clear Tyson was one of his heroes having given his son the same name, but previously suggested he would love to share the ring with him in a ferocious call-out. And now in a huge bombshell, Fury Sr has suggested Tyson agreed to do exactly that while the pair were filming in an unreleased podcast.

"I did say to him in the podcast [not yet released] me and you should do something and fight," Fury Sr said during an interview with Mirror Fighting courtesy of FreeBets.com. "You know what he said? Yeah I would love that. When he said that to me that is the highlight of my life. If I can get in the ring, punch-for-punch, whatever he wants to do if I get carried out or die on a stretcher that is my life completed.

"Because who is better than a man who meant a lot to me because I named my son after him. Tyson is the heavyweight king so I think the world of him. He is a great guy, a man's man with no bulls*** and he has learned from his experiences knowing what people are now. He is a rough ride like me we have both learned a lot haven't we."

Tyson has already been in the ring since his retirement, fighting in a hugely successful exhibition event against Roy Jones Jr in 2020 which set new trends for the sport. It was expected that he could even venture back into the squared circle again, but he eventually ruled out a potential exhibition fight with YouTube star Paul.

Would you like to see Mike Tyson v John Fury? Let us know in the comments section below

However, he recently suggested he would be open to a lucrative rematch in exhibition format against Evander Holyfield as he remains in training and good condition. The pair were caught on camera greeting with Fury Sr clearly delighted with the moment, and he believes that Tyson is one of the greats of the sport.

He continued: "It was amazing for me to meet Mike Tyson. A great, great champion he was such a friendly and emotional guy and he wore his heart on his sleeve. I can only feel sorry for the man as he was mishandled but a great champion, terribly managed at times. It was an honour for me to sit in the same company as him."

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