'If I said don't shop in black stores, I'd be CRUCIFIED': Fury responds to Joshua's 'bullsh*t' Black Lives Matter speech

Tyson Fury says he would be "crucified like Jesus Christ" if he made "bullsh*t" statements similar to those by fellow world heavyweight boxing champion Anthony Joshua at a recent Black Lives Matter protest.

Speaking at a protest just outside London earlier in June, Joshua appeared to suggest that those in attendance should boycott white-owned shops. 

"Abstain from spending your money in their shops and economies, and invest in black-owned businesses. Show them where it hurts," said Joshua, 30, as he read from a piece of paper. 

After receiving a backlash, an unrepentant Joshua told people they could "go f*ck themselves" if they thought he was racist, insisting that the remarks had been taken out of context.

Now, undefeated WBC champion Fury – who is set to face Joshua in a blockbuster Battle of Britain double-header next year – has weighed in on the issue.   

“I saw the video, I’m not one of those people who jump on bandwagons, I’m not one of those people who, when something’s trending, jump in on it," Fury said on Behind the Gloves.

“I’m not a sheep, I don’t follow the crowd. I sit away from the crowd. I’m a standalone wolf... I don't just jump on something because it's in fashion to give that person stick.  

“Everyone does what they’ve got to do, I’m sure AJ’s got his reasons why he said what he said and it’s none of my business, that’s his own opinions, and everyone to their own opinions."

But turning to Joshua's non-apology and defiance in the face of criticism, Fury struck a different tone, claiming the response would have been very different had something similar come from him.

“Whatever his reasons were, he’s done it and it’s in the past. I’m sure he’s apologized if he’s offended anybody – oh, he actually didn’t, did he?

“He said, ‘If you didn’t like what I said, go f*ck yourself,’ so yeah, no apology necessary.

“Let’s just say, I’m not pushing knives in or kicking anybody when they’re down, but if it’d been me who said, ‘Don’t shop in any black-owned stores or any Asian-owned stores and don’t buy from their businesses,’ then I’d have been crucified like Jesus Christ.”

Nicknamed 'The Gypsy King' due to his traveler family roots, Fury said he had been subjected to racism "all his life."  

"Good job it wasn't me [who said that], and it never would be me, because to me, color doesn't exist. I've got the most diverse team in boxing," the 6ft 7in fighter said.  

"I've suffered racism all my life. I'm 32 in August, I come from a traveling background, gypsies, hated race of people. It's the only set of people that it's sort of acceptable to be racist towards these days. 

"But I'm not a person who gives a damn about what color a person is or what background they are from, because to me, everyone's the same."

READ MORE: If the UK is serious about tackling racism, it needs to address its unchecked bigotry towards travelers and gypsies 

Unable to resist one last dig at his rival, Fury suggested Joshua was lost when not being chaperoned by promoter Eddie Hearn or a PR team.

"The thing is with Joshua, he's always got Eddie to talk for him, to do all the media stuff for him, even that speech he was reading off a piece of paper.

"Everything's planned, but of course during the lockdown Eddie wasn't with him when he did this, or else he would have given him a right kick up the rear end, because I think it's cost him a lot of pay-per-views.

"It's upset a lot of people because he's supposed to be a poster boy and he talks bullsh*t like that."  

Lineal world champion Fury has courted controversy for comments of his own in the past, including that "a woman's best place is in the kitchen or on her back," as well as making disparaging remarks about homosexuals.  

The opinionated Manchester fighter recently implored UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson "to grow a pair" after a statue of wartime leader Winston Churchill was vandalized in London during Black Lives Matter protests. 

Despite a carefully-cultivated image as a heavyweight poster boy, Joshua has also taken flak for comments in the past in which he allegedly referred to black people as "the superior race" in a text message exchange with rival Eddie Chambers. 

READ MORE: ‘Disgrace to superior black race’ - Anthony Joshua allegedly sends ‘racist' messages to rival

It was announced last week that  WBA, IBF, WBO, and IBO title holder Joshua and WBC king Fury would meet in a double-header next year, in what are widely tipped to be the biggest bouts in British boxing history. 

The big-money showdown, which could net each boxer upwards of $100 million for the first fight alone, has already come under scrutiny however over the involvement of alleged Irish crime lord Daniel Kinahan in brokering the deal. 

Before the bouts happen, Fury first faces a trilogy fight with American Deontay Wilder, whom he stopped in February, while Joshua also has business to attend to in an expected showdown later this year with mandatory challenger Kubrat Pulev of Bulgaria.