Oleskandr Usyk felt the full force of an unpopular victory as the unified heavyweight champion was left in a sparse ring after his greatest triumph.
Usyk dominated Tyson Fury for the majority of an entertaining fight, leaving the arena with another double win over a British fighter lauded as the next coming of Muhammad Ali. Following his two wins over the exposed Anthony Joshua, Usyk backed up his legendary credentials with a second win over Fury.
World Boxing News scored the fight as the three judges unequivocally did 116-112 to groans from Fury fans.
However, it was noticeable how empty the ring was as Usyk tried to celebrate becoming the most exceptional heavyweight of the last generation.
Moving to 23-0, 14 KOs, Usyk defended his WBC, WBA, and WBO belts as Fury dropped to 34-2-1, 24 KOs, and failed to set the world alight again. Fury has struggled since his trilogy with Deontay Wilder, leading many to believe the ‘Bronze Bomber’ took away the fight from his later career.
After Francis Ngannou dropped Fury in October, Usyk added to his Joshua domination by hurting ‘The Gypsy King’ on many occasions over 24 rounds.
The Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, didn’t embrace Usyk, which is their loss. Even Turki Alalshikh had difficulty giving Usyk his props because he championed Fury in a biased fashion throughout fight week. Usyk has every right to feel disrespected, and if he never returned to Saudi Arabia, nobody could blame him.
As he walked around the ring showing off a Ukrainian saber to the crowd, it was evident how much everyone involved wanted Fury to win. There was audible silence from a large portion of the crowd.
Fury did have his moments and out-threw Usyk during a portion of the fight, but his success was far less thathat of n the formidable Ukrainian. As in the first meeting, the champion proved to be the more consistent of the two. Usyk landed half of his power shots, including many overhand lefts, cementing his undoubted triumph.
In another showing of disregard for a super-human boxer, the first thing asked of Usyk was to explain the scorecards, which should never have been in doubt.
“I’m not the judge; I’m an athlete. It’s not my decision. I win. Thank you, God,” he said with the grace and patience of a saint in an almost empty ring. “I’ve been training, good preparation. Listen, today, for me, is a very happy day. My sons won their Judo competitions today. My son talked to me and said, ‘Hey, Papa, you’re next.’ I said I will try.”
He didn’t just try; he beat a giant, outweighing him by 80 pounds, and he did it with skills unmatched in the modern day.
On his defeated opponent, who had threatened him in expletive-laden rants all week, Usyk again showed his class.
“He’s a great fighter, he’s a great opponent. It was a great 24 rounds. I want to devote this victory to my mother. She’s always worried about me, and I want to thank her very much for everything you’ve done for me. I devote this to her and all mothers of Ukraine.”
In a third showing of disrespect, Daniel Dubois butted in as Usyk was becoming emotional. Despite the further rudeness, which seemed to be the night’s theme, Usyk agreed to a rematch.
“No problem. I am ready. I want to be home for a little rest, but I’m ready.”
No matter how much anyone involved tries to take something away from Usyk’s win, the undefeated road warrior shoved it down their throats, which must have tasted bitter as all the UK promoters ringside had no piece of the pie.
Well done, Usyk. A true legend of the sport.
