British heavyweight Tyson Fury sparked a new bout of boxing versus MMA headlines on Thursday by claiming he would “smash” UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez.
Fury's reputation is as strong as it has ever been after he chalked up his 20th professional bout without defeat, and if he gets his way he will fight Vitali Klitschko for a world title in March.
However, if he cannot lure the Ukrainian into the ring, Fury appears more than willing to take on newly-crowned UFC star Velasquez, who won back the belt against Junior Dos Santos with a dominant performance on December 29.
Fury attempted to bait a response either from Velasquez or UFC president Dana White, claiming he is the real “baddest man on the planet”, a label often used to describe the UFC heavyweight champion. And it appears Fury would even be willing to fight MMA rules against Velasquez to prove his point:
“If the Klitchkos [won't] fight me then I'll go and fight the MMA heavyweight champ, at least he is game. Wouldn't last 2 rounds,” Fury tweeted.