Ring Of Fire: Fury v Usyk Preview And Prediction

It’s a historic clash of the titans as Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk collide to crown the first undisputed world heavyweight champion since 1999 at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Saturday night (Sunday morning SA time), writes Quintin van Jaarsveld.

12 AM Sunday SA time

Tyson Fury (1.83) v Oleksandr Usyk (2.00) (Undisputed World Heavyweight Championship)

It’s a blockbuster fight that needed to happen but for the longest time looked like it never would.

Failed negotiations after failed negotiations led to the two best heavyweights in the world cleaning out the division over the last few years and after their originally scheduled meeting in February had to be postponed due to Fury sustaining a cut during training, they’ll now finally step inside the ring for the much-anticipated winner-takes-all war scheduled for 12 rounds.

WBC titleholder and lineal heavyweight king Fury will look to seize the WBA, WBO and IBF titles away from Usyk to become the first undisputed heavyweight champion since his British compatriot Lennox Lewis over two decades ago in a mouth-watering megafight between two undefeated greats.

Usyk, who scored a ninth-round TKO win over Daniel Dubois in his most recent title defence last August, watched as Fury suffered a scare before claiming a split-decision victory over former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou in October. Now, they’re hell-bent on proving they’re the one true king of the heavyweights.

The two have shared space atop boxing’s glamour division for more than two years since Usyk, a former undisputed cruiserweight champion, moved up and dethroned Anthony Joshua on the latter’s home turf in England in 2021. The Ukrainian repeated the feat the following year, outpointing “AJ” once again to put their rivalry to bed.

Fury is an anomaly. A six-foot-nine leviathan who dodges punches like he’s in the Matrix, his footwork and head movement are otherworldly for a giant. He’s proven to be as close to bulletproof in boxing terms as they come as he famously rose off the canvas after having fallen victim to a crushing combination from Deontay Wilder in the 12th round of their first fight, and recovered after being dropped by Ngannou, who up until recently held the world record for the hardest punch ever thrown.

Offensively, “The Gypsy King” is both a towering technician and a brutal bully, depending on his mood. Utilising every bit of his 85-inch reach to systematically break down his opponent or simply walk him down and pile on the pressure, his remarkable record stands at 34 wins and one draw with 24 knockouts.

At six-foot-three, Usyk gives up six inches in height and seven in reach to Fury while at 220, he’s also about 40 pounds lighter. However, as an Olympic gold medalist, his technical prowess, ring IQ and masterful movement have enabled him to topple larger and smaller foes alike.

Boasting a perfect professional record of 21-0 with 14 knockouts, the speed, cardio, intelligence and sophistication of “The Cat” out of the southpaw stance makes him Fury’s most complete challenge in years.

Power, pressure and making his smaller opponent carry his weight are Fury’s biggest keys to victory while speed and nuance are Usyk’s ticket to ultimate glory.

Fury’s size and power, coupled with his hand speed, footwork, fight IQ, mastery of distance and precision punching makes him the man to back. The British behemoth can win by knockout or decision (which is more likely), so I’m happy going with the money line.

Prediction: Fury by decision.

Best Bet: Fury at 1.83.

Alternative Bet: Fury by decision at 3.10.