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Seven months after an exciting first fight, unified world heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk (22-0, 14 KOs) will defend his WBC, WBA and WBO titles against Tyson “The Gypsy King” Fury (34-1-1 , 24 KOs) on Saturday, December 21 at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, live on DAZN PPV.
The first matchup between Usyk and Fury was an instant classic as Fury was in control for the first half of the fight and Usyk looked dominant down the stretch. The highly anticipated rematch is set for this coming Saturday as Usyk looks for a repeat and Fury looks for redemption. December 1, 2018 marked the beginning of what would prove to be a very entertaining trilogy between Tyson Fury and the strong WBC champion Deontay “The Bronze Bomber” Wilder. In the first bout, Wilder’s power was on display as he scored a 9th round knockout.
In the 12th and final round, Deontay Wilder landed a two-three combination that appeared to knock Tyson Fury out. Once the referee’s count reached 6, Fury appeared as WWE wrestler “The Undertaker”. Wilder scored both takedowns, but Fury outworked Wilder for most of the other rounds.
At the conclusion of the 12-round contest, the bout was declared a split decision draw. Fury and Wilder would cross paths twice more as Fury scored two convincing victories.
After the trilogy with Wilder, Fury stopped both Dillian Whyte and Derek Chisora. In October 2023, Fury had a lackluster performance when he defeated former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou by split decision. Seven months after the Ngannou fight, Fury stepped into the ring to engage in a historic battle.
After dominating the cruiserweight division, Oleksandr Usyk made his heavyweight debut in October 2019 when he stopped Chazz Witherspoon in the seventh round. A year later, Usyk defeated Derek Chisora by unanimous decision.
The former Cruiserweight King would face the Unified World Heavyweight Champion. On the night of September 25, 2021, Oleksandr Usyk submitted Anthony Joshua and won the world title fight by unanimous decision. With the win, Usyk became the new World Heavyweight Champion of the WBA, WBO and IBF.
Eleven months later, a man considered one of the best heavyweights of this era, Anthony Joshua, got his rematch against Oleksandr Usyk. Joshua made the adjustments to make the rematch more competitive, but Usyk was still able to come away with the split decision victory.
Oleksandr Usyk would go on to make a successful second defense of his unified title by stopping Daniel Dubois in the 9th round. Next on Usyk’s agenda was a match against another heavyweight who is considered one of the best of this era.
On the night of May 18, 2024, in a battle for the undisputed world heavyweight crown, WBC champion Tyson Fury got off to a good start as he stayed on the outside, used his feints and landed the jab constantly In round #2, Usyk stayed on the front foot, sliding from side to side and landing both jab and left to the body.
For most of the first half of the fight, Usyk was the aggressor, but Fury did a good job of controlling the range and boxing on the back foot. After landing solid shots to Usyk’s body, Fury ended the sixth round by connecting with a sharp uppercut that hurt Usyk.
During the second half of the fight, the southpaw Usyk continued to push forward, sliding from side to side, applying physical and mental pressure. Late in round 9, Usyk landed a hard left hand that floored Fury. Usyk proceeded to land a flurry of shots as Fury staggered around the ring until he finally went down.
Fury survived the loss, but down the stretch, Usyk was the stronger and more active fighter. At the end of the 12-round contest, Oleksandr Usyk won by split decision to become the first undisputed heavyweight champion since 1999.
Usyk also accomplished the feat of winning the undisputed crown in two divisions. Weeks after his historic win, Usyk was stripped of his IBF title. Now, his rematch against Tyson Fury is a unified world title fight.
Tyson Fury is the key to the rematch because he is the man who has to make the adjustments. In the first half of the first fight, Fury was boxing hard from the back foot until he made a critical mistake. The question is, then, will Fury try to duplicate her performance by omitting the error, or will she fight back on the front foot and be the aggressor?
Oleksandr Usyk is a matchup nightmare due to the fact that he has elite level boxing skills, footwork and ring IQ. His opponent, Tyson Fury, is a master at making the necessary adjustments. That said, when Usyk and Fury meet for the second time on December 21st, will it be a repeat or redemption?
