LONDON -- Tyson Fury retained his WBC heavyweight title with a sixth-round TKO of Dillian Whyte on Saturday before 94,000-plus at Wembley Stadium, a right uppercut that sent the challenger crashing to the canvas.
Whyte made it to his feet before the count of 10, but when asked to walk forward by the referee, he stumbled into the ropes and the bout was waved off with one second left in the round.
The 33-year-old Fury was making the second defense of the title he won from Deontay Wilder in 2020 via seventh-round KO. Fury followed that victory with an 11th-round KO of Wilder in October in ESPN's Fight of the Year.
Following his dismissal of Whyte, Fury suggested retirement remains a possibility.
"I promised my lovely wife, Paris, of 14 years that after the Wilder 3 fight that would be it, and I meant it," Fury said moments after the fight. "It was a great trilogy and I meant that. ...
"But I got offered to fight at Wembley, at home, a fight I deserved -- I owed it to the fans ... I owed it to every person in the U.K. to fight at Wembley. And now it's all gone, I have to be a man of my word and think this is it. This might be the final curtain of the Gypsy King."
Round-by-round analysis:
Round 6: Fury lands a right uppercut that sends Whyte to the canvas, and the fight is over! Fury wins by TKO.
Round 5: Whyte continues to dig to the body and is far more effective than earlier in the bout, but anytime Fury pushes the fight to the middle of the ring, Tyson is in command. Whyte is looking for one big shot that hasn't materialized. 10-9, Fury. 50-45, Fury.
Round 4: Referee Mark Lyson losing control of this bout. He's having a hard time separating these big men. Whyte lands on the break, and all hell almost breaks loose. Whyte now cut over the right eye. Lots of roughhouse tactics, and it's getting ugly between the boxers. Better round for Whyte who finally lands a few clean shots. 10-9, Fury. 40-36, Fury.
Round 3: It's all Fury, who's throwing nice, straight shots that are breaking through the guard at will. Fury attacking the body with both hands and also mixing in a jab downstairs. Whyte has no answers so far, and his right eye is beginning to swell. 10-9, Fury. 30-27, Fury.
Round 2: Now it's Whyte who's orthodox and Fury who's southpaw. Whyte telegraphing these haymakers hasn't come close to connecting yet. Needs to feint here and there. Fury excellent with the jab, and it's landing over and over. Clear round for Fury. 10-9, Fury. 20-18, Fury.
Round 1: Dillian Whyte surprisingly starts the fight out of the southpaw stance. The opening round features a lot of jabbing and not much else. Fury takes a close round, 10-9.
Results:
Essuman outboxes Tetley for decision win
Ekow Essuman retained the British welterweight title along with the Commonwealth welterweight title with a unanimous decision victory over Darren Tetley in the final undercard bout.
Essuman (17-0, 7 KOs) used his superior athleticism to outbox Tetley (21-3, 9 KOs) over 12 tactical rounds and prevailed via scores of 117-111, 116-112 and 116-112.
The 33-year-old native of Botswana was coming off a sixth-round KO in October. Tetley, 28, of Bradford, England, has now lost three of his last four bouts.
Ball bloodies, stops Lowe in Round 6
In a bloody featherweight battle, Nick Ball handed Isaac Lowe, a good friend of Tyson Fury's, his second consecutive defeat.
Ball (15-0, 8 KOs) used relentless pressure to wear down Lowe (21-2-3, 6 KOs) in a fight that featured plenty of exchanges and gruesome cuts for both boxers.
The 25-year-old from Liverpool floored Lowe in Round 2 and poured more punishment on throughout before the corner threw in the towel at 1:45 of Round 6.
Lowe, a 28-year-old from Lancaster, England, suffered his first pro defeat in December, a seventh-round KO against Luis Alberto Lopez.
Adeleye shines in TKO of Healey
David Adeleye scored a fourth-round stoppage of journeyman Chris Healey to remain undefeated.
The 25-year-old heavyweight, a native of London, landed a barrage of punches before the referee stepped in to halt the contest at 52 seconds of Round 4.
Adeleye (9-0, 8 KOs), one of Tyson Fury's sparring partners, hurt his overmatched opponent on several occasions in the showcase bout. Healey (9-9, 2 KOs) has dropped five of his past six bouts.
Younger Fury wins, keeps chance of a Jake Paul fight alive
Tommy Fury, the half-brother of Tyson Fury, remains in the hunt for a fight with YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul.
The 22-year-old light heavyweight floored Daniel Bocianski (10-2, 2 KOs) in Round 5 and bloodied the Poland native throughout the six-round bout. The referee scored the contest 60-54.
Fury (8-0, 4 KOs) was fighting for the first time since August when he competed on a Paul undercard in a prelude to a December meeting with the social media star. However, Fury withdrew from the pay-per-view main event against Paul after he was diagnosed with a chest infection.
It's unclear if the bout will be revisited.
Itauma goes to 7-0 with TKO win
Karol Itauma, with a second-round TKO of Michal Ciach, improved to 7-0 (with five knockouts) in the final undercard bout before the ESPN+ PPV begins.
Itauma, a 21-year-old Englishman, connected with a right hook that floored Ciach, prompting the referee to wave off the light heavyweight contest at 2:27 of Round 2.
Ciach (2-12, 1 KO), a 30-year-old from Poland, dropped his fourth consecutive bout.
Barney-Smith dominates Radoi to stay unbeaten
Royston Barney-Smith remained undefeated to kick-off the ESPN+ undercard of Fury-Whyte.
The 18-year-old southpaw, in just his second professional fight, outpointed Constantin Radoi via shutout after the referee scored the bout 40-36.
Barney-Smith, who signed a promotional deal with Frank Warren's Queensberry Promotions, said Thursday that he aims to become the youngest junior lightweight champion in British history. Radoi (0-11), a 23-year-old native of Romania, put up little resistance over the four-round showcase bout.