Billy Joe Saunders ‘very concerned’ that Tyson Fury ‘won’t see 30 years old’

The concern over heavyweight champion Tyson Fury’s mental state is growing, and now his friend and fellow fighter Billy Joe Saunders has spoken publicly and said that he’s concerned Fury will be dead by the time he’s 30 if he doesn’t get help.

"I'm very concerned that he won't see 30 years old. Very concerned. If the public don't get behind him, and he doesn't get the help he needs, it could affect his life and his family's lives forever. ... I've spoken to him, but he's down, he's very down, he's not in a mood to talk to anybody. He's mentally not there. Nothing shocks me at the moment, because he's not mentally right. He needs help. He's in a bad place at the minute. I know him very well; extremely bad place."

Fury, who has reportedly been suffering from depression, something he’s made note of in the past, has had a strange 2016. After beating Wladimir Klitschko to end 2015 in a big way and become the world’s top heavyweight boxer, Fury has twice canceled that rematch, once due to reported injury, and this latest time due to his reported battles with depression.

He also tested positive for cocaine in a VADA test taken on September 22, and on Monday, he announced a retirement on Twitter, only to take it back hours later.

Saunders, who says he’s known Fury since he was 14 years old, speaking publicly the way he is is definitely a sign that something is very wrong with Fury at the moment, and like Billy Joe, we can only hope that Tyson gets the help he needs. He’s a polarizing figure, sure, but he’s also a human being like the rest of us, a man with a family and friends.