No professional opponent had defeated Tyson Fury, until Oleksandr Usyk’s brilliant display in May saw the Ukrainian become the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world.
It was the first time Fury’s hand hadn’t been raised at the end of a fight since Russian amateur Maksim Babanin beat him in 2007.
The Briton’s undefeated record had been a great source of pride. But going into the rematch, which takes place this Saturday live on Sky Sports Box Office, Fury has not dwelt on the loss.
“I was undefeated for 17 years as a boxer. That’s a long time,” Fury told Sky Sports.
“I haven’t had any thoughts about it really. It hasn’t affected me I haven’t done anything different to what I would have done had I got the decision.
“I wouldn’t have done some fancy something different if I’d have got the decision or didn’t. I’ve not really thought about it to be fair. I don’t focus on the past even, I just concentrate on the day in hand.”
But he couldn’t deny the reverse has lent him a new edge for the rematch.
He said: “Sometimes I think about, if I’m going for a run in something, I think about right this [person] has got a decision over me, I want to reverse that in the rematch.
“Obviously I’m a competitor, I’m competitive. So I do think like that.”
Top Rank’s Bob Arum, who co-promotes Fury, sees a fighter fired up by that first defeat. “I think it really shook him up and therefore he’s trained a lot more seriously than he did before,” Arum told Sky Sports.
“In other words he always trained hard, but the dedication for this one is far and above what it’s been for any fight other than maybe the second [Deontay] Wilder fight.”
Famously, after a controversial draw in his first fight with Wilder, Fury stormed into the American and stopped him in their rematch.
Undercard fighter Isaac Lowe, who since he was a child has trained alongside Fury and knows him better than most, is convinced the former champion will rally from this adversity too.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Fury promises to inflict ‘a lot of pain’ in his rematch with Usyk
“Look at his track record, when he’s been put down or whatever, he’s always come back and knocked the other person out,” Lowe told Sky Sports.
“I’m expecting the best version of Tyson Fury. There’s not a hell of a lot different he has to do right. Just minor things, keeping more concentration and keeping focused and I think little tweaks here and there will make a difference in this fight. I expect him to go and do a number this time around.
“Everyone’s written him off all through his career. When he went up to 30 stone, before he boxed [Wladimir] Klitschko, when the Wilder fight was, this and that, and he always comes back against the odds and does it.
“What a stage to do this time around.”
It was a high-pressure, high-level event when Fury first fought Usyk. But Fury’s youth gives another clue as to how he will respond to that defeat.
In 2006 Tyson Fury boxed David Price in the North West final of the ABA national championships. That might sound like a minor matter, but on the amateur circuit at that time it was as big as it could get.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Moses Itauma says Fury’s mindset has completely changed as he trained like a ‘lone wolf’ and is coming for revenge
Back then Macaulay McGowan trained with Fury at Jimmy Egan’s amateur boxing club.
Recalling that moment McGowan told Sky Sports: “It was just the North West final. It was massive. Tyson wanted to get on GB. Obviously David Price was an international, Commonwealth gold medallist. He was going to the Olympics. Suddenly this 17, 18-year-old kid’s come out of nowhere, started giving him rubbish in the Boxing News and all that.
“It came out a couple of weeks later that David Price wasn’t even bothered about the ABAs but then he’d seen Tyson give him rubbish in the Boxing News.
“It was a big fight. It was like an undisputed world title fight, I remember it today. He wanted the 2008 Olympic spot and he was given his chance to prove it.”
Fury lost that decision to Price. “He was a bit down, [thinking:] ‘I’m never going to do that, I’m never going to do this.’ Then he’s back in the gym, and he’s training. He gets that bit between his teeth and he goes even harder,” McGowan remembered.
“He won the ABAs and went pro after that. It’s like water off a duck’s back to him. He just cracked on. Don’t get me wrong he has his low points, he’s dead down, disappointed, he was devastated. I don’t think he wanted to feel that again. So he knuckled down and went even harder.
“I can see Tyson go: ‘No you’re not having it this time’ and get his head down.
“I think he’ll come back stronger. Definitely.”
Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury’s huge heavyweight rematch will be live on Saturday December 21 on Sky Sports Box Office. Book Usyk v Fury 2 now!