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Boxing: Usyk Defeats Fury To Retain Heavyweight Titles

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Oleksandr Usyk gave Tyson Fury his second loss to retain his unified heavyweight world titles in another close points win in their rematch in Saudi Arabia. All three judges scored the fight 116-112 to the 37-year-old Usyk, allowing him to keep his WBA (Super), WBC and WBO titles.

With the victory, Usyk extended his undefeated record to 23 pro wins, adding to his success as a Olympic gold medalist and former undisputed cruiserweight champion. Many experts now regard him as one of the best heavyweight fighters of this generation.

Two-time champ Fury has only ever lost to Usyk and now holds a record of 34 wins, 1 draw and 2 losses. Visibly upset after the fight, Fury left the ring without being interviewed. He later said backstage that he was convinced that he had won the bout by multiple rounds.

IBF world champion Daniel Dubois however climbed into the ring and called for a rematch with Usyk, who had defeated him in August of last year.

Fight Summary

After giving Fury his first career defeat by split decision in May, Usyk came into the matchup at the Riyadh’s Kingdom Arena as a slight favourite. 

Fury entered the ring to Mariah Carey’s ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ and was dressed as Father Christmas, bringing a festive vibe. Usyk on the other hand, marched in with his normal stern-face and looked like all-business as he crouched in his coroner to recite a prayer.

Both fighters started off slow not wanting to over-commit in the opening rounds. Fury was much more serious than in the first fight, not using any of his normal showboating tactics to get into his opponent’s mind. 

The first big punch to be landed came from Fury in the closing seconds of the second which wobbled Usyk. Luckily for the Ukrainian the bell rang a few moments later to allow him to recover in his corner.

Fury used his height and reach advantage to keep Usyk away for the early fight but as the bout wore on, Usyk was able to focus Fury’s body to deal some heavy damage. A couple of solid left hooks landed flush on Fury in the 4th round which seemed to slow the 6 foot 7 giant down. Then an overhand left connected cleanly in the sixth which gave Usyk the upper hand going into the backend of the fight. 

Fury did have a second wind later in the fight and clearly won a couple of the late rounds. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough with Usyk dominating the championship rounds and unleashing some terrific combinations which visibly hurt Fury.

In the end, while the fight was close, Usyk was the clear winner. His ability to get inside and pressure Fury was the key, as he was able to land 35 more punches than Fury.

What’s Next?

Usyk seems to be running out of opponents of his calibre in the heavyweight division. He will most likely face the winner of Daniel Dubois vs. Joseph Parker, which is set to take place in February of next year. Dubois lost to Usky in August 2023 but has scored stoppage wins over Jarrell Miller, Filip Hrgovic, and Anthony Joshua since.

It should be noted that Usyk had previously hinted he could move back down cruiserweight. It would however take a huge amount of discipline to lose the weight and recondition himself to fight 30-40 pounds lighter than he is at the moment.

Fury seems to be coming to the twilight of his career but still has the ability to last 12 rounds and pull in a crowd. Many want him to fight Anthony Joshua who is also at a crossroads after a brutal knockout defeat by Dubois. This could be the ideal time for the much-anticipated all-British heavyweight tussle.

 

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