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Seven months after a thrilling 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 KO) on Saturday, December 21st at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, live on DAZN PPV.
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The first fight between Usyk and Fury was an instant classic, as Fury was in control of 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 is looking for a repeat and Fury is looking for redemption. December 1, 2018 marked the beginning of what would prove to be a very entertaining trilogy between Tyson Fury and the hard-hitting WBC champion Deontay “The Bronze Bomber” Wilder. In the first fight, Wilder’s power was on display as he scored a knockdown in the ninth round.
In the twelfth and final round, Deontay Wilder landed a two-three combination that appeared to knock out Tyson Fury. Once the referee’s count reached 6, Fury appeared as WWE wrestler “The Undertaker”. Wilder scored the two knockdowns, but Fury outboxed Wilder for most of the other rounds.
At the end of the 12-round contest, the bout was declared a draw by split decision. Fury and Wilder would cross paths twice more as Fury managed to secure two convincing victories.
After the trilogy with Wilder, Fury went on to stop both Dillian Whyte and Derek Chisora. In October 2023, Fury had a lackluster performance defeating former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou via split decision. Seven months after the Ngannou fight, Fury stepped into the ring to participate in a historic fight.
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After dominating the lightweight division, Oleksandr Usyk made his heavyweight debut in October 2019 when he stopped Chazz Witherspoon in the 7th round. A year later, Usyk defeated Derek Chisora by unanimous decision.
The former lightweight king would go on to face the unified world heavyweight champion. On the night of September 25, 2021, Oleksandr Usyk knocked out Anthony Joshua and won the world title fight by unanimous decision. With the victory, Usyk became the new WBA, WBO and IBF world heavyweight champion.
Eleven months later, a man considered one of the best heavyweights of this era, Anthony Joshua, got his rematch against Oleksandr Usyk. Joshua made adjustments to make the rematch more competitive, but Usyk still managed to get the split decision victory.
Oleksandr Usyk would go on to successfully defend his unified title for the second time by stopping Daniel Dubois in the 9th round. Next on Usyk’s agenda was a match against another heavyweight 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 by staying on the outside, using his feints and consistently landing the jab. In round number 2, Usyk stayed on the front foot, sliding from side to side and landing both the 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 distance and pushing off the back foot. After landing solid shots to Usyk’s body, Fury finished the sixth round by connecting with a sharp uppercut that hurt Usyk.
During the second half of the fight, the southpaw Usyk continued to press forward, sliding from side to side, applying both physical and mental pressure. Towards the end of round 9, Usyk landed a hard left hand shot that staggered Fury. Usyk proceeded to land a barrage of strikes as Fury staggered around the ring until he finally fell.
Fury survived the knockdown, but along the way Usyk was the stronger and more active fighter. At the end of the 12-round contest, Oleksandr Usyk won by split decision and became 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 bout.
Tyson Fury is the key to the rematch because he is the man who needs to make the changes. In the first half of the first fight, Fury was boxing well off the back foot until he made a critical mistake. So the question is: will Fury attempt to duplicate his performance by omitting the mistake, or will he fight off the front foot and be the aggressor?
Oleksandr Usyk is a matchup nightmare because he has elite level boxing skills, footwork, and ring IQ. His opponent, Tyson Fury, is a master when it comes to making the necessary adjustments. That said, will it be a repeat or redemption on December 21, when Usyk and Fury face each other for the second time?
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