TYSON FURY has maybe dropped a hint that he could retire without ever facing Anthony Joshua.
The Gypsy King is now preparing to defend his WBC heavyweight title against Dillian Whyte after AJ refused a step-aside deal to let him battle Oleksandr Usyk in a unification clash.
A last-ditch bid to make an undisputed heavyweight title fight between Fury and the undefeated Usyk fell through last week just hours before the WBC champ’s showdown with Whyte went to purse bids.
Promoter Frank Warren claimed the Saudi showdown collapsed because AJ wanted an extra ‘£3.7million’ to step away from his rematch with Usyk, a demand that sent the champ up the wall.
Joshua has stuck to his guns and will now have his chance at redemption against the Ukrainian.
That could see Fury even take on the winner if he successfully overcomes Whyte.
Now the undefeated star has hinted that he could follow UFC legend Khabib Nurmagomedov in quitting with a perfect record.
Sharing a picture on Twitter of the MMA king holding a Manchester United top at Old Trafford, he captioned it with: “This man did it right. Got in & won & got out on top. Big respect @TeamKhabib.”
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Fury has hinted he could retire in the near future after knocking out Deontay Wilder in their trilogy bout last October.
He told the Telegraph: “I don’t know what’s going to happen.
“I’ve got one fight left on my contract with Top Rank and ESPN and we’ll see what that is.
“But I’m not thinking about boxing right now. I don’t know how many fights I’ve got left.
“I don’t know if I need to fight any more. I don’t know what the future holds.”
He added: “I don’t have any goals in boxing, I have done everything and won everything, the only one to do it in my era.
“I will always have been the WBC, WBA, WBO, IBF, Ring magazine champion, that will not evaporate in history, but once it is done, it is done and you cannot get it back.
“Once you are done, it doesn’t matter how many belts you have, who you beat, what your record is. You are just another bare bum in the shower and I have always had that opinion.
“You have to enjoy it while it is here because when it is gone it is gone. Even the wins and the glory die down and sooner or later you just become another person and a has-been.”
