Highlights

• John McDermott may be a name you're not overly familiar with, unless you are a die-hard boxing fan.
• Well, he is the man who a lot of people claim 'beat' Tyson Fury, only for the judges to take the win away from him.
• Now, in 2024, he works in rubbish clearance, and he's admitted to still feeling bitter towards the sport of boxing.

On the 11th of September 2009, John McDermott and Tyson Fury stepped into the ring together for a fight that almost changed the course of both men's boxing careers. At the time, McDermott held the English heavyweight title and put it on the line versus the undefeated Fury. What happened next changed the life of McDermott.

John McDermott vs Tyson Fury Was a Controversial Fight in 2009

Many fans and critics felt that the judges gave the win to the wrong man

The fight went the full 10 rounds with many thinking McDermott had done enough to earn the nod and retain his title. Unfortunately, the judges felt otherwise. Referee Terry O'Connor scored the fight 98–92 for Fury, which perplexed on-air talent Jim Watt, who asked: "Has he got the names mixed up?"

To this day, many people consider McDermott the true winner of the fight and the first person to defeat Fury in the ring, despite not having his hands raised at the end of the bout.

Now, as Fury prepares to fight Oleksandr Usyk for the first undisputed heavyweight title in decades, McDermott's whereabouts is being brought up. And you might be surprised to find out what he's up to now.

John McDermott in 2024 Lives Very Different Life

“I definitely won it, mate,” McDermott told The Times. “I don’t know how the referee scored it eight rounds to him and two to me. Fury didn’t say a word. I was literally waiting in the changing room for someone to come and say, ‘There’s been a mistake.’"

According to McDermott, John Fury, Tyson's overbearing and sometimes brash father, confronted him after the fight. “I was in the car park and Fury’s dad came up to me and said, ‘I thought you won that, mate, we were lucky to get the decision.’ He didn’t have to say that, did he? It changed my career really.”

The pair rematched and McDermott lost again, this time without the controversy, losing in the ninth. “He had improved, and I came in too light. My trainer, Jim McDonnell, wanted me to move quicker, but he was two stone heavier," he said. "Every time I got close he just grabbed me and kept leaning on me. By the eighth, I had nothing left. I’m not saying it would have changed things, but two weeks before I had glandular fever. They canceled the fight three times in a year. I was training all that time and not earning a penny. I said to my wife, ‘I can’t fight, but I can’t afford not to.'"

John McDermott Isn't 'Bitter' towards Tyson Fury

He is bitter at the sport of boxing following his retirement

McDermott fought just a few more times after Fury, retiring in 2013 without fanfare. Now he lives in Essex with his wife and three daughters and works in rubbish clearance. Looking back at his fight with Fury and reflecting on where the two are now, there's still some pain. “I made 25 grand from fighting him. I didn’t earn enough to buy a house," he said. "Two fights a year, usually 15 grand each, minimum wage innit?"

"I was not bitter at Tyson Fury when I stopped, but I was at the sport. I still am."

Fury has gone on to become a multi-millionaire and one of boxing's biggest names. Had the win gone to the right man that night, McDermott might be where Fury is today. Fury faces off with Usyk on the 18th of May in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The fight was initially scheduled for February but was postponed due to a cut Fury suffered while training.