Former heavyweight champion Tyson Fury was back on the booze this weekend as footage emerged of him being escorted out of a bar in his native Morecambe before collapsing on the pavement.
The clip – which has gone viral on social media – was a concerning sight for fans, especially those who are aware of his relationship with alcohol over the years.
Fury, 35, may have established himself as one of the best heavyweights on the planet over the past decade, but his journey to the top has been far from smooth, with alcohol playing a part in his struggles.
Back in 2015, Fury shocked the world by dethroning heavyweight great Wladimir Klitschko in Germany. It should have been the happiest moment of Fury’s professional life and marked the start of a period of dominance, but instead he did not return to the ring again for almost three years.
Fury pulled out of a rematch with Klitschko in 2016, and turned to the drink. He ballooned up to 28 stone over the following 18 months due to a combination of alcohol, drugs and leaving the boxing gym behind.
He was spotted at Euro 2016, buying England fans Jagerbombs as he watched Roy Hodgson‘s men crash out to Iceland. Both Fury and Hodgson’s side looked far from their best.
+14
Tyson Fury (green jacket) had to be escorted out of a bar on the weekend and later collapsed on the pavement outside
+14
Fury has often turned to drink in the past, but has admitted it has not helped him in his toughest moments
+14
Fury admitted in 2018 that alcohol had a negative effect on his mental health, and led to him contemplating suicide
The Gypsy King later admitted his initial plan had been to take a break from the squared circle but he took things too far and his mental health suffered, leading to him contemplating suicide.
‘I needed some time off, I’d been boxing from boxing since 10, 11 years old up to 27 with no breaks. So I needed time to live a little and enjoy myself but it just went too far,’ he told the Breakfast Club in 2018.
‘I really don’t know what had me depressed but I knew I was just spiralling out of control. The only thing I could think of to make it better and go away for a bit was getting drunk and that just led to problems after problems after problems.’
After appearing down and out, Fury picked himself up off the canvas in 2018 and dusted himself down as he began another bid to reach the summit of the boxing world. He lost 10 stone and had a couple of warm-up fights before facing fearsome puncher Deontay Wilder.
Few gave Fury much of a chance after his previous boozing antics, but he defied the odds again to earn a draw against Wilder, with many observers believing he deserved to get his hand raised.
Fourteen months later, Fury delivered arguably the performance of his career to dismantle Wilder inside seven rounds. He had climbed the mountain again and the world was his oyster.
But another period of inactivity lay ahead as he did not fight again for 20 months. During this time, he hit the booze again.
+14
Fury ballooned up to 28 stone in 2017 after turning to alcohol and drugs after beating Wladimir Klitschko two years earlier
+14
he was spotted on holiday during Euro 2016, drinking with England fans and butinh Jagerbombs
+14
Fury fought back to beat Deontay Wilder in 2020 and 2021 by knockout
+14
But Fury hit the drink again after beating Wilder for a second time as he partied in Las Vegas
Tyson Fury’s drinking gets him in trouble with his wife on ITV doc
Taking to social media in March 2021 – over a year after his win over Wilder – Fury told fans he was enjoying himself on holiday by sinking 12 pints a day.
Having got himself into the shape of his life just months earlier, Fury looked in no condition to fight any time soon.
He realised that himself, and in May 2021 he ditched the drink to prioritise his mental well-being.
That approach paid off as he beat Wilder for a second time in their trilogy fight that October, rising from the canvas twice to knock the American out in the 11th round.
Fury would go on to reveal that his preparation had been disrupted by his new-born daughter being seriously ill in hospital in the build-up to the fight, but his decision to turn his back on the booze certainly seemed to help when he took Wilder’s biggest blows and still came back for more.
His rivalry with Wilder had been put to bed, but his relationship with alcohol was far from over.
Fury partied into the night after beating Wilder again, and was seen swigging from an £800 bottle of vodka.
A few weeks later he was back at it, this time settling into an eight-hour boozing session with two female fans after they approached him for a selfie at a Manchester bar.
Fortunately, he was back in the ring within six months, stopping Dillian Whyte at Wembley, but he would only fight once more over the next 18 months, outclassing Derek Chisora across 10 one-sided rounds.
+14
Fury turned up out of shape for his fight with Francis Ngannou and claimed he beat his opponent after drinking 25 pints
+14
He ended up surviving a major scare against Ngannou as he was knocked down before winning a split decision
The giant heavyweight whipped off his top to reveal a fleshy midriff while declaring that he could have 25 pints of beer and still beat Ngannou.
Fury didn’t put that to the test, but he looked a long way off his best as he scraped past Ngannou via split decision after being knocked down in the third round.
Many expected Fury to take that as a humbling experience, as he almost lost against a man having his first professional boxing match, but Fury’s ego appeared undamaged.
After finally agreeing to face Oleksandr Usyk in an undisputed showdown, Fury brashly boasted at a press conference that he would see off the Ukrainian after drinking 15 pints of Peroni.
Perhaps Usyk should have taken it as a compliment that Fury had brought the figure down by 10 pints from Ngannou, but it was still a bold claim that he ultimately failed to back up.
In their back and forth battle in Saudi Arabia last month, Usyk came on strong in the closing rounds to knock Fury down and prevail on points.
Fury insisted afterwards that he deserved the victory, but it has gone down in the record books as his first professional loss and that may be difficult to come to terms with.
+14
Fury insisted he could get the better of Oleksandr Usyk after having 15 pints of Peroni
+14
Usyk made a mockery of that claim as he knocked Fury down and beat him on points
+14
Fury may be struggling to come to terms with his first loss, and fans are concerned after seeing him stumble out of a bar over the weekend
Tyson Fury ready for a rematch after losing against Usyk
He may have been at a bar in Morecambe over the weekend to drown his sorrows by partying with friends and fans, but the night finished with him needing a helping hand from security before falling over outside and struggling to clamber back to his feet.
A source told The Sun that Fury ‘had a couple too many and wasn’t feeling too well either’, and fans will hope this is just a setback that he can quickly recover from.
Despite the boasts about how much he can drink in his press conferences, the truth seems a little different – with the Gypsy King admitting his ability to hold his drink is not what it once was in his Netflix documentary At Home with the Fury’s.
‘Two, three pints I’m gone, especially beer. Senseless, speechless drunk. Especially if you don’t drink all of the time,’ he said back in 2023.
His rematch with Usyk is already scheduled for December 21, and Fury now knows nothing less than his very best will be enough to challenge his unbeaten rival.
His fellow Brit, Anthony Joshua, has also returned to top form, while Daniel Dubois is another emerging talent at the top of the heavyweight division.
If Fury fails to get back on track swiftly, he could get left behind, and that would be a sad end to a remarkable career.
