Tyson Fury, the new British and Commonwealth heavyweight champion, has said that his Catholic faith is more important to him than boxing. Speaking before he won the title last Saturday the 23-year-old Mancunian said he was praying for his opponent Dereck Chisora. He said: "There’s going to be fierce talk before the fight but I don’t wish Chisora dead or anything like that. This is sport. I will hold no grudges after the fight. I pray that he comes to the fight first of all, that it’s a good fight, and I win. I also pray that he is okay after it. “I try to do everything by the Bible,” he said. “I’ve read testaments in church and I pray a lot. It’s the most important thing to me, more important than boxing. “I would rather be knocked out 10 times by DC than not go to heaven. I’m God-fearing,” he said. Tyson Fury was born in Wythenshawe, Manchester. His Irish father and English mother named their newborn son after the heavyweight world boxing champion Mike Tyson. His father's Traveller family have a long-standing attachment to boxing and bare-knuckle boxing.