Tyson Fury Comments on Drug Use, Mental Illness and More

As world heavyweight boxing champion Tyson Fury's whirlwind stretch continues, the 28-year-old is opening up about his drug use and mental health problems.  

ESPN.com's Dan Rafael reported that Fury was notified by the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association (VADA) of a failed drug test that showed cocaine in a urine sample after he pulled out of his rematch with Wladimir Klitschko.

In an interview with Stayton Bonner of Rolling Stone, Fury admitted that he has been doing cocaine and drinking heavily for four months. 

"I'm going through a lot of personal demons, trying to shake them off," Fury said. "This has got nothing to do with my fighting—what I'm going through right now is my personal life."

Fury also discussed how he feels persecuted because of his background as an Irish Traveler.

"It's been a witch hunt ever since I won that world title, because of my background, because of who I am and what I do—there's hatred for Travelers and gypsies around the world."

Bonner noted that Travelers "are among the most persecuted minorities in the U.K., often representing, in the public mind, a shiftless, criminally-inclined people who refuse to settle into jobs."

In addition to his issues with drugs, Fury said he is undergoing psychiatric treatment to help his battles with depression: "They say I've got a version of bipolar. I'm a manic depressive. I just hope someone kills me before I kill myself."

Fury went on to discuss how he walked away from a training camp in May because his depression was consuming him, noting after leaving camp he never did any training but would go out drinking and take cocaine virtually every day.

"I can't deal with it, and the only thing that helps me is when I get drunk out of me mind," he said.

When asked about the help he was seeking, Fury said he is receiving it, but doctors can't help because he thinks his disease is incurable. He told Bonner: "I ain't happy. I'm very far from it."

Fury was also asked about retiring, saying, "I'm not gonna go in there and risk brain damage every time I go into a fight for people that don't give me no credit." 

On October 1, Fury did walk back previous retirement talk with a post on Twitter that says he's here to stay. 

Fury went on to say he's stopped taking cocaine and drinking alcohol.

Fury was scheduled to have a rematch with Klitschko on October 29, less than one year after he won the WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, IBO and The Ring heavyweight titles and ended Klitschko's 11-year undefeated reign. 

However, Fury withdrew from the fight to get treatment for depression. He could still be stripped of his title belts due to the failed drug test, though he's battling demons far worse than anything in the boxing ring.