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MMA

29th Nov 2018

Tyson Fury has a theory on why press conference melee took place

Fury thinks Deontay Wilder was looking for a way out of the fight

Darragh Murphy

It definitely won’t have done any harm to pay-per-view sales…

Tyson Fury’s final press conference with Deontay Wilder descended into chaos on Wednesday afternoon after an accidental eye poke from ‘The Bronze Bomber’ sparked a melee between the fighters’ camps.

Shane Fury ditched his crutches to get involved while Wilder’s team made their presence known on a crowded stage at Los Angeles’ Westin Bonaventure.

The fracas threatened to get out of hand as the press conference organisers begged for calm before the undefeated heavyweights were eventually separated and brought to finish off their media obligations away from each other.

And with just three days to go until his shot at Wilder’s WBC heavyweight title, Fury has an interesting theory on why the melee took place.

“I think Wilder is very nervous,” Fury explained. “He felt that he needed to scream and shout at me and do all that sort of stuff to try start a bit of a tussle but we’re fighting men. He had his big team and I was up there with me and Ben [Davison], on our own.

“He had all his teammates at the back of the stage when my brothers were in the crowd. But it is what it is. We’re not afraid of anybody.

“If they want to fight outside or fight on the stage then no problem. But we’re here to do a job in sport so let’s keep it professional.

“I believe Wilder wanted me to hit him with a left hook today so he could cancel the fight. That’s what I believe.

“I believe Wilder got in my face so that he could trigger me to hit him so he could get out of the fight. But I ain’t going to make that mistake. I ain’t going to lose half my purse for that idiot, Deontay Wilder.

“He knows he can’t win and I think it’s clear for everyone to see now the nerves in him with the way that he’s conducting himself.”

Deontay Wilder vs Tyson Fury is live on BT Sport Box Office