The fight for the title of absolute world champion between British Tyson Fury and Ukrainian Oleksandr Usyk, which took place on Sunday night in Riyadh, ended in victory for the Ukrainian boxer.
Usyk defeated Fury by split decision (115-112, 114-113 and 113-114).
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko congratulated Usyk on his victory.
This is the first-ever fight for the title of absolute world heavyweight champion in the era of four belts. Usyk defended the WBA, WBO, and IBF championship belts and tried to take away the WBC title that belonged to Fury.
Usyk started the fight more actively. Fury allowed the Ukrainian to strike at him, although he missed a left to the temple in the end.
During the first half of the fight, the boxers did not change their roles: Usyk threw more punches and pinned Fury near the corner. The Briton tried to counterattack, in particular with uppercuts. It was only in the sixth round that Fury looked more noticeable than Usyk and landed several strong blows on the Ukrainian.
The seventh round was the most active in the Usyk-Fury fight. First, there was another uppercut from Fury. And closer to the end, Usyk landed a series of powerful punches on the Briton.
In the eighth round, Usyk was able to punch Fury right in the nose, after which the Briton began to bleed. In the ninth, the Briton was knocked down.
Usyk continued to dominate Fury in the next two rounds. Only in the 11th round did the Briton manage to partially regain control of the fight.
The winner of the Usyk-Fury fight was to be determined by the judges’ notes: both boxers lasted all 12 rounds. The Ukrainian won by a split decision of the judges.
Tyson Fury reportedly demanded a rematch from the Ukrainian boxer in October. Oleksandr Usyk accepted the rematch.
Tyson Fury is undefeated in his 35-fight career
Tyson Fury says Oleksandr Usyk is too small to compete with him in their undisputed heavyweight world title fight.
Briton Fury, 35, is the WBC champion, while Ukraine’s Usyk, 36, holds the WBA, WBO and IBF belts.
Fury said former cruiserweight champion Usyk will be “found wanting” on 18 May in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
“You can beat the average big ones but you can’t beat the elite big ones,” he said.
“Size is what really matters and we have weight divisions for a reason.”
A former undisputed champion at cruiserweight, Usyk beat Briton Anthony Joshua to become unified heavyweight champion in 2021.
The most recent undisputed heavyweight champion was Britain’s Lennox Lewis in 1999. Fury-Usyk will be the first time in the four-belt era that every title is on the line.
February’s bout was rescheduled after Fury suffered a cut in a freak sparring accident two weeks before the fight.
Fury described himself as an “encyclopaedia in boxing” and listed several cruiserweight greats, including Evander Holyfield and David Haye, who were beaten after stepping up to heavyweight.
He said Usyk’s previous opponents, such as Britain’s Daniel Dubois, had “limited ability”.
“If Tyson Fury can’t beat Usyk, Tyson’s no good. End of,” he said.
“This is my time, my destiny, my era and my generation. Facts.”
After his manager, trainer and promoter predicted a knockout win for Fury, he ended the news conference by joking that Usyk would knock him out in the first round.
Fury’s co-promoter Frank Warren said the fight is the “biggest of the 21st Century”.
The fight for the title of absolute world champion between British Tyson Fury and Ukrainian Oleksandr Usyk, scheduled for February 17, will not take place, Suspilne reports, citing Mike Coppinger, a journalist for the American international sports TV channel ESPN.
“On Friday, February 2, the Briton suffered a cut on his face during a sparring session. Fury was stitched up, due to which the WBC belt holder will not have time to prepare for the fight in February,” the statement said.
It is noted that this is the second time the fight has been postponed.
The fight between Usyk and Joshua lasted all 12 rounds. According to the results of the fight, one judge voted for Joshua, the other two gave the advantage to Usyk.
Ukrainian boxer Usyk won a rematch against British Anthony Joshua in Saudi Arabia.
Usyk defended the IBF, WBA, WBO and IBO championship belts, which he took from Joshua in September 2021, and also won the title of champion according to The Ring magazine – it became vacant after Tyson Fury announced his retirement.
Parimatch Ukraine and Oleksandr Usyk make a strong appeal to Ukrainians in a new joint campaign aimed to support Ukraine
Ukrainians are new superheroes. They discover their new hidden superpowers day after day. The whole world is amazed by the bravery, resilience, and courage of the Ukrainians and admired by their unity. No matter what is happening our people create the thing that cannot be seized – the victory of a free nation.
Parimatch Ukraine, the first officially licensed betting company in our country with Ukrainian roots, and Oleksandr Usyk, the Ukrainian boxer, and heavyweight champion, made a powerful and victorious appeal to all our citizens – «Born in Ukraine – Fired up to Win».
«We know that Ukraine starts with every one of us. And everyone is doing everything possible for our common victory. Our brave soldiers fight fiercely for Ukraine, and the volunteers help 24/7 those who desperately need it. Athletes take part in charity matches for peace and join high-profile media campaigns in support of our country. We believe and bringing the victory closer together. Businesses need to keep a cool mind, balance, and responsibility to the country. We have to defend the economic and digital front». – Natalia Hilevych, Parimatch Ukraine CEO said.
Parimatch Ukraine is a Ukrainian business. The company is proud of its Ukrainian roots and strongly condemns military aggression against Ukraine. The national business duty today is to resume work, adhere to all financial obligations to the State, and keep the spirit of Ukrainians high.
Parimatch – Born in Ukraine. Fired up to win!
The rematch between the IBF, WBA Super, WBO, IBO World Heavyweight Boxing Champion Ukrainian Oleksandr Usyk with Briton Anthony Joshua will take place in February – March next year, Usyk’s promoter Oleksandr Krasiuk said.
“… the approximate time … February – March it really is. And within this period, a rematch should take place,” Krasiuk said at a joint press conference with Usyk in Kyiv on Tuesday.
According to the promoter, I would like the rematch to take place in Ukraine.
“In any case, we are working on … we want events of this magnitude to take place in Ukraine. There are a lot of circumstances, but we will still do what depends on us to make the most of such opportunities to popularize the sport,” noted Krasiuk, presenting aloud the future event: “NSC Olimpiysky stadium. Winter. February …”
Ukrainian Oleksandr Usyk became the owner of the IBF, WBO, WBA Super, and IBO heavyweight championship belts (over 90,718 kg), having taken them away from Briton Anthony Joshua.
The Ukrainian won the fight, which took place at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium in London, by unanimous decisions of all referees (117-112, 116-112, 115-113).
