Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk is officially set for February 17th in Saudi Arabia to unify all four major heavyweight belts in a super fight that’s been years in the making. It’s been 24 years since there was last a fight to unify the heavyweight crown, dating back to 1999 when Lennox Lewis defeated Evander Holyfield.
Not only will the bout unify all the major belts, but it will also dole out the first loss of one combatant’s professional career. Fury enters the fight 34-0-1 with 24 KO’s, while Usyk will sport a 21-0 record with 14 KO’s.
“I am destined to cement my legacy as the No. 1 fighter in this era and to do that, I’ve got to beat this little man,” said Fury. “That’s it. Simple as. He’s a tricky man, a good boxer, slick, all of that, but I’ve seen many people like him before. When they fight the big men, they struggle and he’s going to struggle on Feb. 17. He will lose, for sure.”
“I have no goal,” Usyk said regarding the fight. “Only the way. And my way is ’The Undisputed.’ That is why this was the only fight for me. When that bell rings, I will bring the fire.”
The two heavyweights were set to clash earlier this year, before Fury accepted the crossover event with MMA fighter Francis Ngannou. They were then pencilled in for a December bout, before that was ultimately pushed to 2024 to give Fury additional time to train following an uneven in ring display vs. the former UFC fighter.
In typical “Gypsy King” fashion, the 6’9″ 35 year old took shots at virtually everyone associated with Usyk or his promotional team in the event’s first presser of the year. “You know what’s coming, you’re getting smashed to pieces. You’re fighting the best British heavyweight there’s ever been. You beat all the rest of them, but you ain’t beat Tyson Fury, sausage.”
Usyk is fresh off a 9th round KO of Daniel Dubois back in August. Like Fury, he’s no stranger to Saudi Arabia having previously earned a split decision victory over Anthony Joshua in 2022.
The event will be available for PPV, though a price has yet to be formally confirmed.
Photo: Andriy Mukukha. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.