Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk: When is today’s fight, how to watch and the undercard line-up
Tyson Fury fights Oleksandr Usyk in an undisputed world heavyweight title bout tonight and says he is unconcerned by his legacy as a fighter.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with Telegraph Sport, Fury said: “I’m not too concerned about what people are going to be saying in 100 years. The dust from our bones won’t exist in 100 years, never mind what they say about a boxing match in 100 years.”
Fury weighed in at 262lb on Friday and Usyk tipped the scales at 233lb, a career heaviest for the Ukrainian.
The rivals almost came to blows on a packed weigh-in stage, with a cacophony of noise having greeted the Briton. As the two fighters came together for the face-off, Fury put his head in on Usyk and then shoved his foe, but they were quickly separated by security guards.
In the build-up to the bout, see our range of pre-fight predictions from around the boxing world and read three of Usyk’s former opponents on what makes him so difficult to beat.
When is Fury v Usyk?
The undisputed heavyweight clash between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk will take place tonight (Saturday). The ring walks are expected at around 11pm (BST).
The much-hyped encounter had originally been due to take place in Saudi Arabia in February but was postponed after the Briton suffered a “freak cut” above the eye in training.
At a media event on Monday, John Fury, Tyson’s father, headbutted a member of Usyk’s entourage. On Thursday the two fighters came face-to-face at a press conference – or would have done had Tyson Fury not refused to face-off with his Ukrainian opponent.
Where to watch Fury vs Usyk in the UK?
The fight will be available in the UK via DAZN, Sky Sports and TNT Sports.
The cost will be £24.95 via Sky Sports Box Office; or £24.99 for new DAZN customers (that price also includes a month’s subscription to the streaming service). It will cost £23.99 for existing customers. TNT Sports Box Office will charge viewers £24.99 to watch the fight.
Is Fury vs Usyk on the radio?
No. The BBC have been unable to secure the radio broadcast rights despite flying out to Saudi Arabia to try and do so. Talksport is also unable to broadcast the bout, owing to a long-running dispute with Fury’s camp. As a result, the fight will not be broadcast on the radio in the UK.
Where is the fight being held?
The bout will be in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. Both teams flew into Saudi Arabia earlier this month to begin the build-up to the fight.
What’s at stake?
Most significantly, boxing will have an undisputed heavyweight champion for the first time since Lennox Lewis beat Evander Holyfield in Las Vegas 25 years ago.
Speaking to Telegraph Sport, Lewis explained why it has taken so long to get an undisputed match-up back on the agenda and why there was so little trash talking back in his day.
Fury holds the WBC belt, which he won in 2020 when he beat Deontay Wilder. He has defended that belt three times, against Wilder, Dillian Whyte and, most recently, Derek Chisora.
Usyk has held the WBA, IBF and WBO heavyweight titles since beating Anthony Joshua in 2021. He had defended those titles twice: in a rematch with Joshua and most recently against Daniel Dubois.
Both Fury and Usyk are undefeated so far in their professional boxing careers. The winner will become the first undisputed heavyweight champion in the four-belt era.
Why was the the fight rescheduled?
The fight was postponed from its original February date after Fury suffered a cut above his eye in sparring caused by an elbow from Agron Smakici.
Leaked footage from the sparring session together appeared to show that an elbow caused the cut but Smakici insists this was accidental. “When you see the punch, I know I shot a clear punch but the way he held my head, he was pulling my head forward to him. So, that’s maybe why the elbow came through also. But it was a punch first of all. It was a freak accident.”
‼️ Footage has now emerged appearing to show the moment Tyson Fury was cut by an ELBOW in sparring, causing the Oleksandr Usyk fight to be postponed… pic.twitter.com/dDy3e0Cv4o
— Michael Benson (@MichaelBensonn) February 2, 2024
Usyk: My victory will be for Ukraine
Usyk says that, should he win, it could be his last bout in this division. “Maybe I will go back to cruiserweight and win,” said the former undisputed cruiserweight champion.
“I feel incredible, as good as I did at the 2012 Olympic Games. Just as young and energetic, and with a big desire to move forward,” he added. “It’s the most important fight of my career, my sports career and my sporting life. I want to say that my victory is the victory of the entire Ukrainian people. And defeat is personal.
“I was worried about Tyson Fury, that there might be injuries and that our fight might not take place,” he added. “If he was performing, I think he deserves an Oscar. It has to happen because we have a contract. It’s a problem only for Tyson Fury. He signed a contract, so he has to fight. It has been an incredible journey. I can do anything now.”
Fury: ‘I’m going to get paid, get laid, and come back to Morecambe Bay’
Speaking to Telegraph Sport, Fury has revealed his motivations for uniting the belts.
“So I’m going in there to get paid, get laid, and come back to Morecambe Bay.” he said. “I probably won’t even buy anything, because I don’t need anything. I’ll go to the shop and buy a bit of shopping, probably be tighter than I am today. I’ll do the rematch exactly the same, get paid, get laid, come home, Morecambe Bay, still not buy anything.”
On his tactics, Fury confirmed his intention is to dominate the smaller man with his size and power. “I’m looking to do a demolition job on him,” he said. “I just want to beat the silly sausage. Yes, Usyk is fast, talented, he out-boxed a big heavyweight in Anthony Joshua twice but AJ is one-dimensional, one-paced, and I could outbox him with a blindfold on. I’m just different.”
Who is on the undercard line-up?
Jai Opetaia will have a rematch against a man he defeated to become a cruiserweight world champion, Mairis Briedis. They will fight for the vacant IBF cruiserweight championship.
Joe Cordina make a second defence of his IBF super-featherweight crown and will fight Belfast’s IBO world champion, Anthony Cacace.
German heavyweight Agit Kabayel will face Cuban boxer Frank Sanchez.
Sergey Kovalev fights Robin Sirwan Safar at cruiserweight.
Britain’s Mark Chamberlain takes on Joshua Oluwaseun Wahab at lightweight.
Isaac Lowe, who is Tyson Fury’s cousin, takes on Hasibullah Ahmadi at featherweight.
David Nyika, the 6ft 8in Kiwi cruiserweight, will fight Michael Seitz.
Heavyweight Moses Itauma will face Ilja Mezencev.
What are the odds?
Fury to win: 4/15
Usyk to win: 1/1
Draw: 12/1
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