Tyson Fury shuns coronavirus warnings to head down pub for St. Patrick’s Day pint

World heavyweight champion Tyson Fury was not about to let coronavirus warnings KO his St. Patrick’s Day celebrations, defying government advice and heading down his local pub for a pint of Guinness.

British PM Boris Johnson declared at the start of the week that the population should steer clear of pubs and other public venues amid the Covid-19 pandemic which has infected 200,000 people worldwide and claimed upwards of 7,500 lives.

That meant eerily empty streets and deserted pubs in many places in the UK on Tuesday – but Fury was not about to let the warnings spoil his St. Patrick’s Day revelry in the seaside town of Morecambe.

The WBC champ shared a picture with his 3.6 million Instagram followers of himself at his local boozer with pint in hand, standing next to a near life-sized cardboard cutout and joined by cousin and fellow pugilist Isaac Lowe.

The Gypsy King – whose fighting moniker comes from his Irish traveling family roots – also shared footage on Instagram of himself singing along to Irish songs while cruising in his car.

Fury, 31, is in high spirits after his stoppage win against Deontay Wilder in their Las Vegas rematch in February, which saw him cap a remarkable return from the abyss after his battle with mental health issues and drink and drug addictions.   

However, one thing that could take the shine off that resurgence are recent claims that a Lancashire pig farmer was told to lie to help the Manchester fighter win a previous anti-doping case.

Fury and his cousin Hughie, also a boxer, both tested positive for a banned substance back in February 2015.

Both blamed the failed tests on the fact that they had eaten uncastrated wild boar, and after a lengthy showdown with the UK Anti-Doping Agency (UKAD) they were handed backdated two-year bans.  

Now the farmer who testified to support Fury's claims, Martin Carefoot, has stated that he was offered £25,000 (US$30,000) to lie to anti-doping investigators that he had sold the meat to Fury's team.

Fury’s promoter, Frank Warren, has dismissed the claims as “total bullsh*t.”

Fury is slated to face Wilder in a trilogy fight in the US this summer, should it not fall victim to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic around the world. 

In the meantime, Fury seems unlikely to let anything prevent him from getting down the pub.