It's not fair on those boxers who trained and weren't affected by Covid but suddenly are not boxing," Smith added. His strength and power went tonight. He was as weak as a kitten from the first round. At 18st 1lb, I've warned him and warned him. He is a 19st fighter. Fury was taken to hospital after the fight, with promoter Frank Warren confirming he was set to have micro-surgery on the cuts - one above the eye and one on the eye-lid. But you go outside now and people are pulling swords out. You've got little men wanting to be big men but they can't, so they pull out a gun and let five bullets go instead."

I fight to provide a better life for myself and my family," says Fury, who has two children with his wife Paris, a daughter Venezuela and son Prince John James. "I'm not interested in being a role model for anybody else. Every man has his own life to live and every man should take his own path. If the Welsh government allow it, that's fantastic. If not, a decision has to be made whether it takes place. It's discrimination and it's very offensive. There are idiots out there like the people on those programmes but you can find the good and bad in all walks of life. If you go to Wythenshawe, where I was brought up, it's not like that."

We are recruiting

And Fury entered the ring in a style befitting an occasion, sporting a poncho featuring the Mexican flag and a sombrero, and then boarding a parade float for his journey to ringside. With Vitali Klitschko having swapped boxing for politics and younger brother Wladimir getting on in years, Fury believes this is his moment. And not before time.

A hard hook on the ropes in the ninth began another onslaught, with Fury glaring into the eyes of his resilient rival on the bell like a man possessed. But if all these other guys who have been coaching for 30 or 40 years were good enough they'd be here." Klitschko never throws a lot of punches but his punch statistics against Fury made for very grim reading: 52 landed, and only 18 of them power punches, over 36 minutes of boxing. Fury landed with more shots in 11 of the 12 rounds. It was not how a great champion is supposed to go out, fiddled out of his belts in his own manor. Klitschko has a rematch clause but it might be that he goes over the tapes with his team and decides that, at 39, he's got little left to give. When you fight and defeat the enemy waves, you gain Experience Points. You can use those to upgrade your abilities and become a stronger opponent against your foes.When the cuts heal, this will have further developed his engine and ring craft - and ultimately done him no harm at all. What now for Fury? Yet his previous comments on Joshua are intriguing. Davison told ESPN Fury has "too much skill" for Joshua in December 2018. He added: "Joshua is a big man. He's got height, weight, can punch and can box a bit. He's a dangerous man and a threat. He showed he's got heart but whatever he comes and throws at Tyson, Tyson will have an answer for."

I have some good friends who work in the circus," said Klitschko, when he was finally allowed to speak. "They can give you a job if you want?" Bizarrely, given what had gone before, this line seemed to rile Fury the most.

It was a punch in the third round that drew blood above the eye and Fury displayed greater urgency when officials began to show concern, switching from patient boxing to planting his feet in a bid to land heavy, destructive shots.

And Fury, too, deserves plaudits as he showed an orthodox stance, southpaw stance, hit and move tactics, and, ultimately, immense grit in his fifth bout since a 30-month spell out of the sport. Not for the first time in recent memory, he served up a compelling watch in testing circumstances. Could they work together again ? "Potentially. I've worked with Billy Joe on and off before. He's worked with other people. The BBBofC announced all events would be postponed so medics could concentrate on the fight against Covid-19. I'm an all-action man in anything I do. If I'm drinking, I'm drinking until I can't stand up any more. If I'm going out for Chinese, I'm going to an all-you-can-eat Chinese. If I'm eating cake, I'm eating the whole cake. I don't know what you'd call me - an idiot, maybe?"

Our window is open

People want to listen to what I say, whether it's rubbish or facts. And not everyone is as gifted as me in being able to talk rubbish. Anybody can be Mr Boring and sit in the corner and be nice and quiet. But that ain't me. If I'm going somewhere, I'm going to be the life and soul of the place. We also had officials. Trying to cover the show was difficult. The doctors was also a major issue - we have to look after them the best we can." Connections is a new dance project for all ages led by dancer and choreographer Ben Fury both online and in person. Through the movement language of contemporary and breakdance, the project will explore home, culture, space and gentrification. He has warned us to expect more stunts - "I wouldn't be Tyson Fury if I didn't, and now I'm heavyweight champion of the world I've got the perfect stage" - and didn't rule out releasing a single. The kid certainly has a set of lungs on him. It was a good 12 rounds, he was tough. It's all heart and determination - if I can keep going I will do. He was 20-0 and didn't know how to lose, but I was the better man."