Tyson Fury faces losing around half of his £60m prize pot from his fight against Oleksandr Usyk, with £28m set to potentially end up in HMRC’s coffers
Heavyweight boxing champion Tyson Fury is facing an enormous tax bill from his anticipated £60million payday against Oleksandr Usyk in their Saudi Arabia rematch.
The 36-year-old British boxer could part with nearly half his earnings, thanks to UK taxes. If Usyk triumphs, as he did in their first clash in May with a split decision, it won’t only be the bragging rights that Fury will lose.
A JeffBet data analyst has crunched the numbers and found that almost £30m of Fury’s prize fund will be scooped up by the taxman upon his return to Blighty. The figures suggest a hefty 47% swipe of his winnings will end up in the coffers of Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs, a gut-punch totalling around £28m in income tax, with another £1.2 million thrown on top for National Insurance.
With the fight purse between Usyk and Fury believed to hit a colossal £150m, and following his victory in their previous encounter, Usyk is tipped to pocket a lion’s share 60% of the spoils, reports the Express.
A spokesperson from JeffBet offered insights on Fury’s potential fiscal headache, stating: “If you are a resident in the UK you have to pay tax on overseas earnings in the same way, and that remains the same no matter how much someone might earn.
“Good tax advice is always important and in this case you can be sure the Fury camp will have looked at an agreement that would be the most beneficial.”
The Gypsy King has revealed his intense dedication to avenging his only professional loss. He’s gone to the extent of not speaking to his wife Paris for three months to stay utterly focused on the task.
Discussing his strategy for the upcoming fight, Fury said: “A little bit more focus if anything. More laser focus and not as much clowning.
“If I take them two things to the game-plan then that would be a bit more successful. There’s not big margins here. They only gave it to him by a point, [it could have been] a split decision either way, draw, whatever.
“So there’s not massive things we could easily change. But how about this one? How about I took that 10-8 round away in round nine?
“It’s not a draw anymore is it or a win by a point, it’s a clear win. A little bit less fooling and a little bit more focus, laser focus and I should do the job.”