Tyson Fury reveals he had concussion, ‘massive swelling’ and feared brain damage after Deontay Wilder

Tyson Fury said that his trilogy match with Deontay Wilder was the reason he decided to give up boxing. Despite skeptics in the boxing community and even among his own family, the WBC heavyweight champion adamantly claims that he has now permanently departed the sport.

Fury announced his retirement after defeating Dillian Whyte in April. However, he has since said that the bout before that one really served as the catalyst for his decision.

Fury remarked in reference to his trilogy victory over Wilder:

“I knocked him out in round 11, but it wasn’t just hunky dory and let’s all skip back to the changing rooms. I was feeling the back of my head and I had lumps on the back of my head like fists. I didn’t know if I had brain damage, I didn’t know what was up with me.”

“I was very frightened because I had these massive swellings on the back of my head. I was thinking, ‘I could end up with brain damage.’ I was concussed, I didn’t remember anything. I suppose when you get knocked down like that you don’t remember a lot.”

“I was thinking, ‘Did I get put down four times?’ I actually got put down twice. I thought to myself, ‘You know what? I think it’s time to call it a day.’ That was after Wilder 3.”

“I promised Paris, I said, ‘This is gonna be my last fight babe, I won’t put you through this anymore.’ I saw everyone ringside and the amount of stress it was putting on them.”

“I actually said, ‘I won’t fight again after this. I meant it.’ I got back home, I had a couple of weeks doing the bins and the school run… I said to Paris, ‘I’m gonna do one more fight babe, in England.’”

“I felt like I needed to come back to England and have another big fight in the UK.”

In response to requests for him to come back, Fury continued: “I definitely had a successful career, but how many times do you have to risk getting injured?”

“People say, ‘One more, two more, ten more.’ But if I was to wheel myself out here in a wheelchair and say, ‘I had four more fights guys and got brain damage, thank you very much.’”

“I’m the one that’s getting in there getting punched in the head by these giant men. You’ve gotta want to do these fights. I don’t want to come back to boxing.”

Fury recently said that £500 million would be required to get him to come out of retirement. However, he is certain that he would not fight again at any cost.

Fury said: “No money or anything can make me come out and do what I don’t wanna do. I mean it people – The day you see Tyson Fury back in the ring is gonna be a very, very, very sad day.”

“Because I’ve had enough and I don’t wanna fight no more. The day you see me back in the ring, I’m doing something that I don’t wanna do.”

“When you don’t wanna do something and are forced to do it – that’s a sad moment in your life. Even for all the money in the world, I don’t want to fight. I’ve given all I’ve got to give. I haven’t got any more fight in me.”