Tyson Fury on Deontay Wilder: ‘He has dynamite power but I’m not afraid to slug it out with him’

Tyson Fury has admitted he will have to confront Deontay Wilder in a slugging match at some point in their heavyweight world title clash next month.

Fury is renowned for his boxing skills, but he understands that to defeat the unbeaten American in Los Angeles on December 1 he will have to be aggressive, as well as slippery and tricky.

Former four-belt title holder Fury, 30, is in California, working at the gym of renowned trainer Freddie Roach - who will be in his corner - as he attempts an extraordinary comeback after just two low-key fights in three years.

WBC champion Wilder, 33, has knocked out 39 of his 40 opponents, but Fury believes he will have to get up close with the big hitter, even though his title defeat of Wladimir Klitschko in 2015 was achieved, in boxing parlance, on his toes.

Fury said: “Wilder is someone with dynamite power. I don’t know about me being clever, but it’s going to be a heavyweight title fight and we are going to have to start hitting each other.

“It is true that styles make fights and that is what will make this an interesting clash. But we will be having a go at each other and I am hoping it is going to be the toughest fight of my life.

“We can both knock each other out, but we also have to be fit enough to go 12 rounds. That is what I am preparing to do. But it will be a fight, because that is what heavyweights do. It will become about having a go. We are unbeaten giants with a point to prove.

“I won in Germany against Klitschko and that is where I am happy to be now - a road warrior.”

Fury has shifted base from the Big Bear training camp in the San Bernardino Mountains to finalise his preparations at Roach’s Wild Card gym in Hollywood. The 58-year-old has worked with some of boxing’s biggest names, from Mike Tyson and Oscar De La Hoya to Manny Pacquiao and Amir Khan.

“It’s great to have Freddie’s experience now,” he added. “He can also give us good experience in the corner on the night. We always planned to move down to LA. Big Bear was about altitude training, but we’ve moved down to sea level to train. It’s not a mind tactic, it’s just that Freddie is an experienced guy and it will be to my advantage.”

Fury’s comments offer a far more measured analysis of how he is preparing than the uproar he delivered during last month’s publicity tour of London, New York and LA.

But the hype will crank up again in the coming weeks - with Anthony Joshua potentially waiting in the wings - for a fight which, surprisingly, has yet to sell out the Staples Centre in LA. Fury insists the clash would have packed out Old Trafford if it had been staged in England, which is enjoying a boxing boom.

“If this had been at Old Trafford or elsewhere in the UK, we’d have sold out a stadium with 75,000 people,” said Fury. “I feel I have the support of the world, not just British fans.

“I’m jogging down the road in LA and everybody is cheering my name. I’m sure I will have as many fans in the arena as Wilder. It doesn’t really matter where the fight takes place, the outcome will be the same. But it’s all the more sweet if you win in somebody else’s backyard.”

While Fury may seem relaxed, doubts remain that he has undergone anything like the preparation he should have before taking on a champion like Wilder.

But whatever happens, Fury is happy that his return to boxing has helped him beat the problems he has faced: depression, drug abuse and weight gain.

He added: “I’m not so sure it is the boxing that helps, but it’s definitely the training.

“When I don’t train, I get low. When I train, I’m fine. It has really helped me in the last year or so.”