Tyson Fury has explained how a sparring incident in 2016 permanently changed the way he speaks.
Fury returns to the ring in Las Vegas this Saturday night, looking to end his rivalry with Deontay Wilder as he fights the American for the third time.
The fight is Fury's since decisively stopping Wilder in their rematch last February following their controversial split decision draw in December 2018, as the Mirror reports.
Fury spoke with Ariel Helwani earlier this week, with the two discussing the similarities between Tyson's voice and his father's.
But the British heavyweight said the huskiness to his voice has not always been present, citing a throat injury he suffered five years ago for altering his vocal cords.
He said: "It wasn't always like this though, this isn't my original voice. If you go back at look at interviews from like 2010 onwards right up until about 2016, I didn't have this voice.
"One of my good friends, Ty Mitchell. We were sparring and he hit me in the throat real hard and I developed a blood clot in me throat. It messed around with my vocal words so this is why I talk like this now.
"So it sounds just like my dad. I can even hear it myself, we've both got the husky voice. Some would say it's quite sexy, I've been told."
Fury and Wilder were supposed to meet earlier this year, but their July bout was scratched after Fury and several members of his training camp tested positive for Covid-19.
Wilder has not bought into Fury's reason for withdrawing from the fight, claiming Fury "faked" having the virus.
Fury laughed off Wilder's claims, stating: “I don’t care what Deontay Wilder says. Because, you know, if we wanna take this publicly, then we have medical records by doctors here in Las Vegas who tested me.
"So yeah, I don’t think you can fake COVID with the PCR test, when they stick a big thing up your nose."
Fury has been backed to weigh 20lbs heavier than his last fight when he faces Wilder on Saturday night.
'The Gypsy King' stepped on the scale at 273lbs for his February 2020 clash against Wilder, but his trainer SugarHill Steward thinks he will around 290lbs for the trilogy.
He told Vegas Insider : "It’s not going to be 300 pounds, it’s probably going to be like 290 or something but not 300 exactly. Heavier than last time by 20 pounds or so, why not?
"The bigger the better, the heavier the stronger. He’s training with that weight, he’s built up. It’s not like he’s just putting on fat, it’s building up muscles. The bigger the better, the heavier the stronger."
Get the latest sports headlines straight to your inbox by signing up for free email alerts
