"About to go on total blackout" - Tyson Fury to adopt LeBron James' social media strategy as he prepares for his fight against Dillian Whyte
It wouldn't be much of a stretch to assume that elite athletes share a few similarities and strategies that give them an edge in their respective sports. Tyson Fury, one of the best boxers in the world today, has taken a page out of NBA superstar LeBron James' book.
Fury is adopting a similar tactic that James has used throughout his career. Fury, who is scheduled to fight Dillian Whyte in April, will be logging off social media as he starts training.
The heavyweight boxing champion has eight-and-a-half weeks to prepare for his fight against Whyte, who has a record of 28-12 with 19 knockouts. Fury took to Twitter to share the news of his impending "total blackout."
"I'm about to go off social media for eight-and-a-half weeks. I'm going to go into training camp to give Dillian Whyte all the respect in the world that he needs. I will train like he's Muhammad Ali for this camp. I will never underestimate anybody in my life. And I will give this man all the respect he deserves coming in as the #1 ranked WBC heavyweight challenger in the world today," Fury said.
"The Gypsy King" will defend his WBC and The Ring heavyweight championship against Dillian Whyte on the 23rd of April at Wembley Stadium in London. It will be Fury's second defense following his win over Deontay Wilder in their trilogy fight last October.
Logging off social media in preparation for a big game or the playoffs was popularized by LeBron James. The four-time NBA champion calls it "Zero Dark Thirty-23," something he has done multiple times during many of his teams' postseason runs.
Will LeBron James activate 'Zero Dark Thirty - 23' after the All-Star break?
LeBron James and the LA Lakers will resume their season on February 25th against the LA Clippers. The Lakers are currently in ninth place in the Western Conference standings with a record of 27-31. They are a game-and-a-half behind the Clippers heading into their clash.
The All-Star Weekend was memorable for James, especially seeing as the silent feud between Klutch Sports and the Lakers front office is rife. The tension between the two camps is likely to cause more problems over the remainder of the season.
Klutch Sports has four Lakers under their banner, including LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Talen Horton-Tucker and Kendrick Nunn. With James entering the final year of his deal next season, it will be interesting to see what "The King" decides to do next.
James has been playing great in his 19th NBA season, averaging 29.1 points. 7.9 rebounds. 6.5 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.0 blocks. He's third in scoring and fourth in minutes per game. At age 37, James will enter the rest of the season with more problems than solutions. It does not help that Davis is set to miss at least four weeks due to an ankle injury.