LONDON (AP) – What could be the final blow to Tyson Fury’s controversial boxing career struck Dillian Whyte’s chin, causing him to fall to the canvas and send one of his teeth flying through the air.
Fury raised his right hand to celebrate, knowing there would be no return from an uppercut seemingly felt all over Wembley Stadium.
And sure enough, there wasn’t.
With a brutal finish in the closing seconds of the sixth round, Fury defeated Whyte – his compatriot and former sparring partner – in front of over 94,000 fans at the England national football stadium to go unbeaten with the 32nd win of his 33-fight professional career.
And that could be it, said 33-year-old Fury.
“This might be the last curtain for the Gypsy King,” Fury said into the ring, wearing his WBC and Ring Magazine belts around his shoulders. “What a way to go out.”
He wasn’t quite done there yet. Fury, a born entertainer, gave the biggest capacity ever for a boxing match in Britain a now-familiar rendition of Don McLean’s “American Pie” after the fight.
He celebrated with his team and posed for pictures with children dressed in the red and white colors of the flag of England on St. George’s Day.
Fury may have been dipping his last moments in a ring after 14 years as a professional. Before his last fight – or so he says – he gave a clinic.
After a gripping trilogy with Deontay Wilder in the States, Whyte was a big step-down for Fury, who mostly played with his compatriot after chasing him in a coy opening of a few rounds.
Fury had the fight under control with no real effort until the fifth round, which he dominated. A shot to the body and then a straight move to the right rocked Whyte back, kicking off the crowd.
By what turned out to be the last lap, Whyte started breathing heavier and had a cut around his right eye – possibly from a head collision.
Whyte – the old mandatory challenger – was reckless most of the time with some big but quirky shots. He tried to play rough and get inside Fury’s head, hoping to deliver that one big punch to turn him into a superstar overnight.
In the end it came from Fury’s right hand, causing Whyte to fall to the canvas.
Whyte eventually got up and tried to show he was ready to continue, but then stumbled towards the ropes, forcing the referee to end the fight.
Fury called it a “showstopper at Wembley Stadium.”
“He’s as strong as a bull and has the heart of a lion,” Fury said of Whyte, “but tonight he met a great in the sport, one of the greatest heavyweights of all time.
“I think,” Fury added, “even Lennox Lewis would be proud of that uppercut.”
When he retires, Fury will go down in history as Britain’s greatest heavyweight, surpassing Lewis.
What could still keep him going is the chance to become the undisputed champion of what could be a hugely lucrative match against Oleksandr Usyk or Anthony Joshua.
Usyk defeated Joshua last September to win the WBA, IBF and WBO titles and is gearing up for a rematch with Joshua after leaving his native Ukraine, where he helped his country in the war with Russia.
That’s all Fury would have left to claim among the current crop of heavyweights in a mid-range era for the sport’s roster, which would be a quieter place without the six-foot-tall Brit whose mouth and opinions kept him running. have gotten into trouble over the years.
“I’ve never experienced anything like this – I messed up my ring walk!” said Fury, coming out in a red and white dress and blowing kisses to the crowd before fireworks lit up Wembley.
He ran to the ring and sat on a throne. He then showed that he was the king of heavyweights, way too good for Whyte anyway.
“He wasn’t just fighting a world champion in this game,” Fury said. “I’m a legend…what a way to top it all off.”
Just to be sure, Fury was asked one last time: is that it for real?
“I think so,” he said.
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Steve Douglas is at https://twitter.com/sdouglas80
