Peter Fury : ‘Clan Fury’ can alter perception of Irish Travellers - Ireland

From Boxing Ireland

Peter Fury believes his son, Hughie, and nephew, Tyson, can help change the negative perception some people have of Irish Travellers by dominating the heavyweight division for many years.

Although the Fury family settled in Lancashire they are fiercely proud of their Traveller heritage with their Irish roots in Belfast and Galway.

Fury is looking forward to returning to Ireland this weekend where he will be in the corner for his son, Hughie, when he fights Croatian Ivica Perkovic at The Fairways Hotel, Dundalk on Friday July 12.

Speaking exclusively to Boxing-Ireland.com he said: “The Fat Gypsy wedding television programmes did not represent us well – I look at all that as a joke and to some degree it makes us a laughing stock. Putting on a show for people to look at it and laugh at.

“The real travelling community – especially Irish Travellers – which is our background, are fair and square, proper people. They have a fight or whatever but you know, we are what we are, which is pleasant people.

“People who can fight don’t go around bragging about it every day – if they can fight they can fight – they will have a beer with you, shake your hand and that’s the end of it.

“People go about their business quietly in a quiet manner – real Travellers. It’s only the ones that want to be noticed and what to cling on to some sort of false fame and start acting out of fame which gives Travellers a bad name.

“But I’m proud of my Travelling heritage and my Irish heritage. We are what we are so we try to represent the people the best way we can.

“We don’t discriminate. We don’t say ‘oh we’re Travellers and they’re not’. We treat people all the same. If we are treated with respect we treat you with respect.”