‘Boxing is a drug’ – Oleksandr Usyk finally reacts to Tyson Fury’s shock retirement

Oleksandr Usyk doubts Tyson Fury is retired for good.

‘The Gypsy King’ had boxing fans with their heads in their hands when he hung up his gloves for a fourth time last month.

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Before taking to social media to drop the bombshell, Saudi boxing chief Turki Alalshikh was preparing an offer for the long-awaited all-British showdown between Fury and Anthony Joshua.

However, Fury’s decision has put those talks on ice.

Some believe he has merely stepped away from the sport as a way of negotiating a better deal for the AJ fight.

Others, like his promoter Frank Warren, think he will stick to his guns.

Usyk’s stance falls closer to the former line of thinking, although his reasoning is far deeper than just money.

“I don’t think about it but I think it is not true,” he told talkSPORT.com in an unprecedented exclusive interview on the London Eye.

“Once Tyson has relaxed, and rested, maybe Tyson will be back.

“Boxing if you do this for a long time: 10, 15, 20, 25 years then boxing is like a drug.

“If you don’t go to training one day then you feel dead. For me, at least.

“I train every day. I don’t do boxing every day. Sometimes I do crossfit, and running training.

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“I only do boxing when I am in my camp.”

In many ways boxing is like a drug.

For several pugilists the biggest fight they face is coming to terms with retirement and their fractured lives after boxing.

When your entire existence has been based around the sport and the rigorous routine that comes with it, having that taken away overnight can be devastating to a fighter’s psyche.

So many great champions have fought on for too long; pulled back in by the allure of the bright lights.

Roy Jones Jr insisted at his peak that he would call time on his career before his inevitable decline yet the First Ballot Hall of Famer stepped between the ropes for a professional bout less than two years ago against former UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis at 54 years old.

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Walking away from the sport has been equally difficult for Fury, who retired for the first time back in November 2013 following the breakdown of his fight with David Haye.

Three months later, he was back in the ring against Joey Abell before pulling off a monumental upset against Wladimir Klitschko for the unified WBA, WBO, and IBF heavyweight titles in 2015.

Fury and Klitschko were expected to rematch immediately after but the Mancunian’s mental health spiralled out of control, forcing him to call time on his career in July 2017.

Following a three-year hiatus, Fury returned to action in June 2018.

A miraculous recovery saw him snatch the WBC heavyweight title away from Deontay Wilder in an epic trilogy before defending the belt by flattening Dillian Whyte in April 2022 and then retiring thereafter.

Once again, Fury was back in the ring before the year was out as he battered an ageing Derek Chisora from pillar to post in December 2022.

A crossover clash with Francis Ngannou followed before Oleksandr Usyk handed Fury the first blemishes on his professional record in consecutive fights in May 2024 and December 2024.

Three weeks after their sequel, Fury took to social media to announce his fourth retirement.

“Hi everybody, I’ll make this short and sweet, I’d like to announce my retirement from boxing, I’ve loved every single minute of it,” he said in a video posted to Instagram.

“I’m going to end with this: Dick Turpin wore a mask. God bless everybody, I’ll see you on the other side.”

Only he knows if it is for the long run this time.