Tyson Fury takes aim at 'coward' Dillian Whyte with Oleksandr Usyk also in sights

Tyson Fury says he will make easy work of “coward” Dillian Whyte before switching attention to “sending little sucker Oleksandr Usyk packing” and become the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world.

The undefeated Brit, who currently holds the WBC belt, is set to face mandatory challenger Whyte in the UK in late April after Fury’s co-promoter Frank Warren won purse bids last month to stage the fight.

Fury, 33, is to receive 80 per cent of the record $42 million purse, although that could change should Whyte be successful in his appeal to the WBC for a larger share.

Speaking on Tuesday during a short stay in Dubai, Fury said a press conference to promote the April clash would take place in the UK on Thursday, with details to come on where the fight will be staged. The Principality Stadium in Wales has been mooted as a possible venue, and the bout slated for April 23.

“Press conference Thursday,” Fury told The National. “That’s the fight we’re going to do. Frank won the purse bids. And now what we’re going to do is knock [him] out.”

Fury, whose professional record stands at 31 wins and one draw, last fought in October, when he knocked out Deontay Wilder in their trilogy bout in Las Vegas. In doing so, Fury took the series 2-0 — their first encounter ended in a controversial draw.

Whyte, meanwhile, has not competed since his rematch victory in March against former WBA champion Alexander Povetkin. Whyte's record reads 28-2.

Asked what sort of threat his fellow Brit poses, Fury said: “Nothing. The guy’s a bum. None of these fights turn me on any more. Not one of them. It’s just a boxing match to me now.

“Even the Wilder fights didn’t really get me up for the fights. It’s just a boxing match these days. I don’t have any specific reason for doing it. I do it because I can and it’s easy. That’s it.”

While Fury has been characteristically vocal during the past few weeks, Whyte has kept his counsel, other than a two-word response on Instagram to his upcoming opponent that read: “Just work”.

Promoter Eddie Hearn said Whyte’s focus on the fight illustrates his hunger, with the Matchroom chief at the same time questioning Fury’s desire.

“I’m not really interested in it,” Fury said. “I just think [Whyte is] a bit of a [expletive]. I know he’s a [expletive]. Because I put it on him and he wouldn’t even fight back. Coward. And I ain’t got no time for cowards.”

On how the fight against Whyte would play out, Fury added: “Easy. I knock [him] out. Very easy as well. I’m going to land one of these bazookas on him and it’s going to be over.”

Be successful against Whyte — Fury goes into the contest as overwhelming favourite — and a unification bout against either Usyk or Anthony Joshua awaits.

At present, Usyk holds the WBA, WBO and IBF titles having dominated then-champion Joshua in London in September, winning by unanimous decision. The pair are scheduled to fight once more, most likely in April or May, after Joshua officially triggered his rematch clause. Usyk, the former undisputed cruiserweight champion, has won all 19 professional fights.

“You can only take who you can fight at the time,” Fury said. “I’ve got Dillian Whyte next and then there’s a little sucker called Usyk who I’m going to absolutely set about rotten.

“The middleweight. Send him packing. Send him back down to middleweight. That’s all I’m going to do.”

Fury said he sees little threat posed by Usyk, who before defeating Joshua was in his previous fight taken to 12 rounds by Derek Chisora. The Ukrainian ultimately prevailed on points.

Tyson Fury at the MTK Strong gym in Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National

“AJ’s a big old bodybuilder,” Fury said. “He ain’t worth a carrot. I don’t want to hear how good Usyk is. Let him fight a real heavyweight. He fought an old journeyman in Derek Chisora and it was life and death.

“And then he fought a bodybuilder who’s not even a boxer and had a life-and-death [fight]. Until he fights a real fighting man you can’t call him a champion.

“All roads lead to me; I’m the ‘Gypsy King’. If he can beat me I’d say he’s a good man. But if he can’t I’ll still say he’s useless.”

As to how he saw Usyk-Joshua 2, Fury said: “Usyk will beat him in the rematch. Yet again. Because AJ’s a bum, he can’t fight. He’s been exposed. He’s a cross-fit bum. And that’s all I want to say.”

Saudi Arabia has been tipped as front-runner to host the eventual heavyweight unification bout, with a deal in place last year for Fury versus Joshua before it was shelved. Fury was made to meet Wilder, leaving Joshua to go up against Usyk, then the WBO mandatory challenger.

On Tuesday, Fury would not rule out competing in the Middle East this year, saying: “I’ll be fighting here very soon. Don’t ask me no questions because I don’t want to tell you any lies.”

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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

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Recharge as needed, says Mat Dryden: “We try to make it a rule that every two to three months, even if it’s for four days, we get away, get some time together, recharge, refresh.” The couple take an hour a day to check into their businesses and that’s it.

Stick to the schedule, says Mike Addo: “We have an entire wall known as ‘The Lab,’ covered with colour-coded Post-it notes dedicated to our joint weekly planner, content board, marketing strategy, trends, ideas and upcoming meetings.”

Be a team, suggests Addo: “When training together, you have to trust in each other’s abilities. Otherwise working out together very quickly becomes one person training the other.”

Pull your weight, says Thuymi Do: “To do what we do, there definitely can be no lazy member of the team.”

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US tops drug cost charts

The study of 13 essential drugs showed costs in the United States were about 300 per cent higher than the global average, followed by Germany at 126 per cent and 122 per cent in the UAE.

Thailand, Kenya and Malaysia were rated as nations with the lowest costs, about 90 per cent cheaper.

In the case of insulin, diabetic patients in the US paid five and a half times the global average, while in the UAE the costs are about 50 per cent higher than the median price of branded and generic drugs.

Some of the costliest drugs worldwide include Lipitor for high cholesterol.

The study’s price index placed the US at an exorbitant 2,170 per cent higher for Lipitor than the average global price and the UAE at the eighth spot globally with costs 252 per cent higher.

High blood pressure medication Zestril was also more than 2,680 per cent higher in the US and the UAE price was 187 per cent higher than the global price.