RIAD.- The Ukrainian boxer Oleksandr Usyk will face the Englishman Tyson Fury in a fight on December 21 in Riyadh, which will be a rematch of the one they both fought in the middle of the month, the Saudi organizer of the evening announced this Wednesday.
On May 19, Usyk (37 years old) became the unanimous heavyweight champion of the boxing after winning a split decision by the judges over Fury (35 years old), in a fight that took place in the Saudi capital and which marked the first defeat in his career for the British boxer.
It was an unprecedented feat in the four-belt era, with Usyk joining legends such as Mohamed Ali, Joe Louis and Mike Tyson as undisputed heavyweight champion and the first since boxing recognized four titles, those of the World Association (WBA), World Council (WBC), World Organization (WBO) and International Federation (FIB).
Britain’s Lennox Lewis was the last boxer to unify heavyweight belts (three at the time) after beating Evander Holyfield in 1999.
Usyk, who briefly served as a soldier after the Russian invasion of Ukraine and has a brilliant record of 22 victories in as many fights, had already been the absolute champion of the cruiserweight, as well as Olympic champion in 2012.
Shock confirmation:
“The rematch between absolute champion Oleksandr Usyk and champion Tyson Fury has been scheduled for December 21, 2024 in Riyadh,” Turki Alalshikh, president of General Entertainment Authority, announced on X.
In this way, Saudi Arabia continues to host a large number of high-level events in the sporting world, in the country’s authorities’ attempt to clean up the nation’s image a bit due to its restrictions against women, among other things.
Source: With information from AFP
