We’re about two months away from the rematch for the (almost) undisputed heavyweight title between Oleksander Usyk and Tyson Fury.
Their first fight was an exciting affair, with Usyk earning a split verdict. The official scores were 115-112 for Usyk, 114-113 for Fury and 114-113 for Usyk. Fury clearly disagreed with the verdict, and the two have agreed on little since.
Their rematch on December 21 will be the mid-season of the Riyadh season.
Early in the Riyadh season, Beterbiev won by majority decision of 114-114, 115-113, 116-112 over Dmitry Bivol for the undisputed light heavyweight title in a high-level chess match between the two experienced fighters.
However, the verdict proved controversial, with many fans hoping Dmitry Bivol would win the fight.
However, according to recent media statements from Fury and Usyk, they both scored the unification fight for Beterbiev. Tyson Fury had the 115-113 for Bieterbiev, as did Usyk.
According to an interview he gave to ESPN, Tyson Fury scored 115-113 on fight night, “the same as Glenn Feldman.”
According to BoxNation, Fury later said this about the fight:
“(My brother) Shane had a draw. Bob Howard had a draw. Another cousin of mine had Bivol winning it by four laps. It’s a lot like my fight with Usyk.
“The thing is, I see this fight with Bivol and Beterbiev and all these robbing claims online, but my fight with Usyk was closer, and I don’t see any robbing claims. Why is that?”
The answer is that many people’s memory of the fight will be round 9, when Fury was almost stopped. Those dramatic moments, in the minds of many fans, undid what Fury had achieved before, when Fury arguably got Usyk in trouble as well. Fury also had success down the stretch after a disastrous round nine.
Usually the same fighter wins in rematches, but Fury has proven to be an exception to this rule and many others throughout his career.