Fury vs Usyk 2 LIVE: Latest fight updates and undercard results

Tyson Fury weighed in at a career-high 20st 1lb for tonight’s eagerly anticipated fight with Oleksandr Usyk.

Fury was fully clothed and wearing a heavy leather jacket when he stepped on to the scales while Usyk, the WBA, WBC and WBO champion who won the first contest on a split decision, also kept his clothes on and weighed 16st 2lb, the heaviest he has recorded.

After the rivals had engaged in a stare down for 11 minutes 20 seconds at Thursday’s head-to-head press conference, the final face off lasted only a few seconds before Fury turned away.

In the build-up to the fight, Gareth A Davies went into Fury’s toughest training camp yet and you can also read our range of expert predictions for the bout.

When is Fury vs Usyk 2?

The fight will take place on Saturday, December 21. For the first fight, the ring-walks happened at 10.30pm (GMT). The timings are expected to be similar for this rematch.

Where is Fury vs Usyk 2?

Saudi Arabia is again hosting the contest, with Kingdom Arena in Riyadh as the chosen venue. Speaking to Telegraph Sport last year, promoter Bob Arum described Saudi Arabia as the new Las Vegas for heavyweight boxing. Critics say that the kingdom’s obsession with funding and promoting elite sport is sportswashing. They have recently won the right to host the 2034 Football World Cup.

Where to watch Fury vs Usyk 2 in the UK

Viewers in the UK have the option of accessing the fight on a variety of pay-per-view services: Sky Sports Box Office, TNT Sports Box Office, DAZN pay-per-view, Discovery+ or Amazon. The cost will be £24.99.

Live programming starts at 4pm, almost eight hours before the main event.

Is Fury vs Usyk 2 on the radio?

Yes, the rematch will be broadcast on BBC Radio 5 Live and on TalkSport, with both broadcasters offering commentary from Riyadh. On the BBC, Mark Chapman is hosting the broadcast from 9pm, with commentary from Ronald McIntosh, George Groves and Anthony Crolla. On TalkSport, Jim White will be helming proceedings.

Remarkably, the first fight was not broadcast on the radio in the UK. The BBC were unable to negotiate a deal to cover the bout and TalkSport’s on-and-off dispute with Fury’s camp also prevented them offering commentary.

Watch the Fury v Usyk promo video

In recent years, Saudi investment in boxing has resulted in promotional videos of rare quality. This fight is no different. Here’s the full video:

What is the Fury v Usyk 2 undercard?

• Oleksandr Usyk vs. Tyson Fury (for the WBA, WBC and IBO heavyweight titles)

• Serhii Bohachuk vs. Ishmael Davis; Light middleweight

• Moses Itauma vs. Demsey McKean; Heavyweight

• Johnny Fisher vs. Dave Allen; Heavyweight

• Dennis McCann vs. Peter McGrail (for European super bantamweight title)

• Isaac Lowe vs. Lee McGregor; Featherweight

How do Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk match up?

The rivalry between Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury is made all the more fascinating by their contrasting styles.

Usyk won the first fight via split decision after 12 enthralling rounds. Fury appeared to have the edge in the early exchanges but Usyk dominated the second half of the fight, scoring a knockdown in the ninth that proved crucial when the final scores were announced.

Some of the questions surrounding the first fight have been answered. We now know Usyk has the power to hurt Fury and he can cope with a significant size disadvantage, while Fury proved that he has the boxing skills to trouble the more agile Ukrainian. However, more questions have arisen because now the two fighters have a better understanding of what they are up against. Here’s how each man could win.

How Oleksandr Usyk can beat Tyson Fury

Usyk was as big as 2/1 in the build-up to the first meeting in May and his price shortened as the fight approached, with the 37-year-old a marginal underdog when the opening bell sounded.

Beforehand, people questioned whether Fury’s sheer size would be too much for Usyk to cope with or whether he had the power to hurt the Briton consistently. He answered both of those questions in style and Usyk goes into this rematch knowing he could realistically win by any method, but he still has to be reactive against a far bigger opponent.

The Ukrainian cannot take charge of the middle of the ring and dominate from the off; that route isn’t available to him here or indeed against most of his heavyweight rivals. His tactics will largely depend on what Fury does, and in the first fight he got his gameplan spot on.

Fury used his jab to dictate the distance, but Usyk’s superior movement and speed allowed him to close the distance and keep things tight before he engineered an opening and nearly claimed an early finish. Usyk’s footwork and ringcraft are his main weapons but he may be a bit more open to getting in close and trading blows with Fury occasionally, as he will feel confident he can dominate exchanges and then move out of danger without taking any significant punishment himself.

Usyk is 4/6 to win by any method or 13/8 to record another decision win. However, the value play could be taking on the champion to claim a stoppage at 3/1.

He is an incredibly intelligent fighter and will have a better idea of how to cope with an opponent he is now familiar with - so Usyk’s chances will probably come earlier than the ninth in the rematch.

How Tyson Fury can beat Oleksandr Usyk?

Fury has consistently stated he feels he won the first fight, so there is an argument that he could adopt an identical approach in the second stanza, albeit without the ill-advised showboating he indulged in during the early exchanges in May.

In the first half of the fight, he did manage to build up a bit of a lead with his jabs and combinations, keeping Usyk at range and making himself difficult to hit, but he was unable to maintain that through the second half of the fight and his opponent was undoubtedly the man in the ascendant in the latter exchanges.

Fury is a 13/10 underdog after defeat in May and his best chance to avenge that loss is to leave no room for doubt. The 36-year-old does not have the stamina to match Usyk’s pace over the course of 12 rounds – that much was clear in the first fight – so he needs to force the issue earlier and go hunting for a win, rather than relying on his obvious physical advantages.

Fury is 4/1 to win by KO, TKO or disqualification and if he is to catch Usyk by surprise or off guard his better chances will probably come early on, so taking the Briton to win in rounds 1-6 at 10/1 might be the best play there.

One option for anyone who thinks Fury can take revenge could be backing the Mancunian to simply score a knockdown at 13/8, because even a knockdown or two for Fury might not be enough to end Usyk’s unbeaten record.

Odds correct at the time of writing.

What are Fury and Usyk’s career records?

Oleksandr Usyk v Tyson Fury

• Nationality: Ukrainian v British

• Age: 37 v 36

• Height: 6ft 3in v 6ft 9in

• Reach: 78in v 85in

• Total fights: 22 v 36

• Record: 22-0 (14 KOs) v 34-1-1 (24 KOs)

What are the odds?

Usyk to win: 8/11
Fury to win: 6/5
Draw: 14/1

What people are saying about the fight

Tyson Fury believes “more focus and less clowning” will be the key to getting revenge for his defeat earlier this year.

“I’ve got nothing to say apart from there’s going to be a whole lot of hurt and pain in this fight, you watch. Watch me go to work on this f-----,” he said. “The talking has been done. The first fight I talked and joked. All of my career. This time I’m serious - I’m going to do some f------ damage here on Saturday night.”

Mike Tyson spoke to Fox Sports Radio and believes Fury could have won the first fight. Tyson said: “Tyson Fury could have won that fight if he wasn’t playing around early....I want him [Fury] to be serious enough.”

Lennox Lewis, the last undisputed heavyweight champion before Usyk, backed Fury to not repeat his mistakes from the first fight.

“Fury knows what he needs to do. He’s been at the bottom, he’s been at the top, right now he’s at the bottom and he knows what he needs to do to get to the top, he knows the route to get there,” Lewis told IFLTV.

“It’s going to be a great fight, he wants to be undisputed as well. When he looks at the fight, he knows there is a couple things he should have done and he’s going to go in there and do them.”

Conor McGregor, the former UFC champion, is expecting a proper showdown.

“Fury is another guy who can make great adjustments and if you look at his trilogy with Deontay Wilder, he got better as it went on. I’m expecting a much more dialled in and more tactical Tyson Fury, and the size difference is substantial,” he said.

“But Usyk is a very crafty boxer and that is a hell of a fight. UK heavyweight boxing is in a great place.

Derek Chisora, the former WBC challenger, does not rate Fury’s preparation. “Do I believe Tyson can beat Oleksandr? I look at the way he’s going in sparring camp. I don’t personally believe that with the sparring partners he’s got right now that they’re pushing him to be a menace. They’re in awe of Tyson. They will pull their punches when sparring, these are the things I’m seeing.”

He continued by explaining the difference with Usyk.

“What I’m seeing that Oleksandr is doing it completely different,” he said. “I think Oleksandr is way more like start fast and finish fast. He knows he can hurt him now, so he’s going to come and try and hurt him. He keeps saying that he won’t leave him alone. I would love Tyson to win, but right now, those odds are not looking great.”

Daniel Dubois, holder of the IBF title that Usyk vacated, clearly expects to be the next challenger for whoever wins Saturday’s fight. “I’m coming for their belts! Definitely. The top guys, I want them. I want them all. Just going to rip right through them. If it’s Usyk, then it’ll be revenge. Or if it’s Fury, I’m ready to cover that territory as well. We’ll deal with it when we get there.”

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