Mike CoppingerESPN4 Minute Read
Fury: Ngannou ‘one of the toughest fights’ of the last decade
Tyson Fury credits Francis Ngannou for his performance in their fight, claiming it as his toughest of the past decade.
Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk are set to face off in February for the undisputed heavyweight championship in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, according to sources at ESPN.
The Fury-Usyk match was initially scheduled for December 23, but Fury encountered difficulties in a harder-than-anticipated bout against former UFC champion Francis Ngannou in Riyadh on Saturday. Fury (34-0-1, 24 KOs) endured cuts over his forehead and left eye on his way to a split-decision victory over Ngannou, who was making his professional boxing debut.
In Round 3, Fury, 35, even got knocked down, marking the seventh knockdown of his illustrious career.
Fury and Usyk had already signed contracts for their long-awaited battle for heavyweight supremacy weeks prior to Fury’s fight with Ngannou, which was a 10-round non-title bout.
Following the announcement of the decision, Usyk (21-0, 14 KOs) entered the ring to confront Fury and set up their showdown.
“I’m ready to fight on December 23,” said Usyk, who stepped into the ring after the decision was made. Fury, the WBC heavyweight champion, responded with, “Let’s go now if you want. He’s a smaller man than Francis; I always said Francis was a much more dangerous fight than Oleksandr.”
The day prior to the fight, Usyk posted on Instagram: “Francis, be careful with Tyson, I need him in the ring on Dec. 23.” However, Usyk will now have to wait an additional two months to finally face Fury.
Fury and Usyk were on the verge of a deal to fight in London’s Wembley Stadium this past April, but negotiations fell through at the last minute.
Usyk, 36, is an Olympic gold medalist and former undisputed cruiserweight champion. The Ukrainian currently holds the WBA, WBO, and IBF titles, which he won from Anthony Joshua in 2021. Usyk defended the titles in a rematch with Joshua last summer in Saudi Arabia, winning by decision.
Now that the Fury fight is scheduled for 2024, Usyk will go another year with only one fight. The last time Usyk fought multiple times in one year was in 2018, when he competed three times.
Usyk’s most recent fight took place in August, where he scored a ninth-round knockout against Daniel Dubois in Poland. Usyk is ranked as ESPN’s No. 2 heavyweight and No. 3 pound-for-pound boxer. Fury, on the other hand, was ranked No. 1 at heavyweight and No. 6 pound-for-pound going into the fight. Fury fought twice last year, winning both bouts by TKO, held at soccer stadiums in London (April vs. Dilian Whyte and December vs. Derek Chisora).
This is Fury’s second reign as champion. In 2015, he claimed three heavyweight titles via decision in an upset victory over another Ukrainian, Wladimir Klitschko. However, Fury never defended those titles and was absent from the ring for two-and-a-half years due to depression and substance abuse. At that time, his weight reached over 400 pounds.
Since returning from his hiatus, Fury solidified his position as one of boxing’s top stars with a memorable trilogy against Deontay Wilder for the heavyweight title. Fury won two out of three matches against Wilder, with the third fight being ESPN’s 2021 Fight of the Year and KO of the Year.
The Fury-Usyk agreement includes a rematch clause, ensuring the possibility of two consecutive fights between the two for multimillion-dollar purses.
