Champion heavyweight boxer Tyson Fury has “set the record straight” on where his strength comes from.
In a social media video, Fury dismissed those who had said he would “be a much better fighter if you took the credit yourself, rather than giving it to Jesus Christ”. Instead, he shared a gospel message about sin, grace and the blessing of family life.
Fury recounted a recent conversation with someone who said that his boxing success had solely happened because he “got out of bed in the morning” and put in the hard effort.
He replied: “Nothing that I have is from my doing alone. A man has nothing without God. You can have all the riches in the world and all the material assets. But without God, it means nothing.
“I’ve been blessed truly and abundantly, billions and billions of times, with money, achievements, glory, a great career. But most of all, my saviour has given me my soulmate, my wife Paris, and he says, 'When I put something together, no man can tear it apart'. Beyond that, blessings [have been] unbelievable with all [of my] beautiful, healthy children. The rest of it is unimportant. The belts, a boxing fight, all of that is just icing on the cake. To be a happy, healthy, out-of-trouble and family man is everything that I ever wanted to aspire to be."
He added:“All glory must go to God: God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Without that, I am nothing. I’m another bare bum in the shower, a mortal sinner. Through his grace alone, I’m saved. Through the blood of the lamb who died on that cross for our sins, before He even knew us, before He was even conceived in our mother’s wombs, he says, “I knew you”.
“With faith, anything is possible. Without faith, you're going on your own power. Some people can achieve some great things, but to take it to the elite and beyond only comes from God. With God, everything is possible. Believe that. So I want to come on here today and set a record straight. My power, my strength, my mental ability, my endurance, my ability to get back up and recover all comes from the almighty, through him. All things were made by him. Amen!”
Fury is preparing for a hotly-anticipated fight against Anthony Joshua, scheduled for December in Cardiff. This week, Fury said he would ask his “old pal” Donald Trump to lead his ringwalk before the bout.