UK’s Tyson Fury will fight Ukraine’s Oleksandr Usyk in Riyadh in the first undisputed heavyweight title fight since 1999.
Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk will fight for the undisputed heavyweight championship of the world in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on February 17, organisers have announced.
Fury, 35 – a British citizen of Irish Traveller heritage – is the World Boxing Council (WBC) world champion, while Ukrainian Usyk, 36, holds the World Boxing Association (WBA), World Boxing Organization (WBO), International Boxing Federation (IBF) and International Boxing Organization (IBO) belts. Both have unbeaten records.
Contracts were signed in September for a proposed December 23 date, although that was never confirmed and slid after Fury’s near defeat to former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champion Francis Ngannou in a non-title bout in Saudi Arabia on October 28.
Fury was left with a swollen eye and cut on the forehead after the split-decision win over Ngannou.
Britain’s Lennox Lewis was the last undisputed heavyweight champion in 1999 when he defeated Evander Holyfield to win the WBA, WBC, and IBF titles.
Fury will look to add to his record of 34 wins with one draw since turning professional in 2008, while Usyk has won all of his 21 professional fights.
Saudi Arabia has staged several leading boxing events in recent years, including Usyk’s win over Anthony Joshua in 2022.
source
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