How did you feel when the fight was confirmed?
Julius Francis: I was very happy to have even been
considered [a potential opponent for Tyson]. He was and is
intimidating, but I can’t say I was frightened, ‘cause I wasn’t.
He was one of the biggest names in boxing for the last 150
years. I wasn’t frightened, I was more bothered about my
daughter being born, even though I had to be selfish in
going away to train.
Mark Roe: It was a big thing. For me, to say I’d had one
of my fighters share the ring with one of the best-known
figures in the sport – it was a big thing for me as well. I
wasn’t nervous at all. The only concerns I had were one,
will this fight really happen? And two, to make sure that
Julius wasn’t entirely beyond his capabilities with such a
formidable opponent. Even though he’d been beat, Tyson
was still thought of as the invincible foe.
To reach them sort of heights, I felt it was as good as
any world title fight you could have had.
What were your thoughts on The Mirror paying
for advertising on the bottom of your’ boots?
JF: Frank Maloney had all these ideas, that was all down
to him. I couldn’t give a fuck. My sole focus was Mike
Tyson. It meant absolutely fuck all to me, it didn’t mean
nothing. I really couldn’t have cared less. That was my
attitude.
MR: If it bothered Julius, he never said it did. But if
someone says to you, “You’re gonna get knocked out
in this fight, I want you to wear this”, what’s gonna go
through your mind? They’re planning the funeral when
you’re still alive. But it earned Julius a bit more money, I
suppose, so if you look at it that way…
How do you recall the fight?
JF: We knew Tyson would come straight forward, step
left, step right, and throw a right hand, and that’s what he
done. In my head, in split seconds, I’m thinking ‘He just
fucking hit me’, so my immediate thought was to hit the
fucker back.
We’re going at it like a street fight. Tyson draws you into
a street fight, because that’s his business, and I played his
game. He was a