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Turki Alalshikh hints that Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk rematch clause could be bypassed with huge fight waiting for winner

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Oleksandr Usyk

Boxing chief Turki Alalshikh has hinted that Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk could bypass their rematch clause, teasing a huge fight for the winner.

The undisputed showdown between Fury, who’s the WBC champion, and Usyk, who holds the WBA (super), IBF, WBO and The Ring Magazine titles, is set for May 18 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Speaking in a pre-fight press conference, Fury revealed the ‘secret weapon’ he’s got to beat Usyk.

However, the self-proclaimed ‘Gypsy King’ has been tipped to withdraw from next month’s huge meeting, having backed out of their original February clash.

If Fury and Usyk fight on May 18, then they will run it back as per the terms in their contracts.

But a rematch could be scrapped, according to Saudi advisor Alalshikh, who took to social media to tease a monstrous fight for the undisputed winner.

He posted a picture of himself alongside Anthony Joshua, accompanied with the caption: “We are waiting for the result of Usyk vs Fury.”

Joshua replied: “Patience is a virtue.”

‘AJ’ is fresh off a brutal knockout victory over Francis Ngannou.

He stopped the former UFC champion in devastating fashion to record his fourth win in a row since losing to Usyk.

The British star has seemingly punched his ticket for a shot at the world titles, with WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman claiming there would be nothing standing in the way of him taking on the winner of Fury vs. Usyk.

“The WBC was presented a sanction request which was to fight for the undisputed. The WBC accepted that sanctioning and we accepted the rematch they have requested,” he said.

“But, if it is not anything to do with contractual or promotion, we would absolutely accept the winner to fight Joshua.

“The WBC has been very much attentive to this matter. So, we have completely freed the ground for the undisputed, for a rematch, and for another fight of that level.

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BOXING

Eddie Hearn makes U-turn on prediction for Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk as he reassures fans there is ‘no doubt’ will happen

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Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury

Eddie Hearn has told talkSPORT that he’s now changed his mind about who he believes will win Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk.

The undisputed heavyweight world title fight is under a month away, though some fans are still sceptical about whether it will happen.

Fury vs Usyk has already been postponed once due to a cut to Fury and boxing of course has an unpredictable nature.

However, when asked how sure he is that the fight will happen, Hearn told talkSPORT Drive: “More sure than I am about any normal fight because it’s already been postponed once.

“Honestly, I have no doubt this fight happens.

“People talk about, ‘Was the cut real?’ It’s the most ridiculous statement you could ever hear.

“The guy’s making tens and tens and tens of millions and he’s been training away from his family for nine weeks, you don’t just decide to cut your eye to get you out of the fight. It’s ridiculous.”

Discussing his prediction, Hearn said: “I think it [the postponement] is gonna help Fury in terms of his fitness, he looks in great shape.

“I saw a video of Usyk the other day, he looks in tremendous shape.

“My pick’s going backwards and forwards. I went with Fury, now I’m with Usyk.

“But I want Fury to win the fight. I really believe the fight with AJ can happen if he wins.

“It’s a pure 50/50 fight, it’s one of the best fights that can be made in boxing, it’s the undisputed heavyweight world championship.

“Four weeks – you will see that fight, without a doubt.”

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BOXING

‘I don’t think he fancies it’ – Tyson Fury could still withdraw from Oleksandr Usyk fight according to ex-world champion

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Olek and Tyson

George Groves still doubts Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk will take place.

Fury is set to take on Oleksandr Usyk for all four world title belts on May 18, with the ‘Gypsy King’ having already pulled out of the showdown once after suffering a cut in sparring.

The WBC champion is set to soon resume sparring in his preparations, but doubts are still being raised as to whether Fury’s cut could still pose problems in the fight.

Former WBA super-middleweight champion Groves has insisted Fury could still pull out, and has claimed he would rather be matched up with Anthony Joshua.

He told Betway: “I’ve said since the start – I’ll believe it when I see it. I don’t think Fury has ever fancied the Usyk fight.

“He’s talking about having 10 more fights, but if he loses to Usyk how does that work? It’s a massive risk for him to fight Usyk. He’s probably really hoping that Usyk can’t take a body shot.

When the fight got postponed after the cut, I wasn’t surprised. It gave me the feeling that this fight will never happen.

“I thought to myself, I bet Fury would rather have a bit of Joshua than Usyk because he’ll see that as an easier fight

“The Saudis or the WBC aren’t going to pressure Fury to fight Usyk, so maybe he’s thinking he will go down the Ngannou route again, or fight Joshua.

“That’s the fight everyone really wants to see. I don’t believe if he pulls out he’s going to have to pay a $10million fine. Usyk is probably thinking ‘I don’t know if this guy is going to show up’ because there’s still a chance Fury pulls out.”

The cut occurred in sparring after he received a rogue elbow from training partner Agron Smakici, over the same eye he suffered a gash during his September 2019 win over Otto Wallin.

He has even received warnings that the cut could reopen again, given he will had had just three months to heal the injury by fight night.

Fury held a press conference in Morecambe, and has reassured the boxing world that he is more than ready to take the showdown with Usyk.

He has also been working hard in training camp, and has shown off a remarkable transformation since his narrow win over Francis Ngannou in October 2023.

The 35-year-old even looked impressive on the pads with his father John Fury, who has been working alongside Fury’s coach Sugar Hill Steward in the gym.

The Briton’s cutman Jorge Capetillo has firmly suggested that he will be okay to fight, and suggested a plan is in place to ensure the cut doesn’t reopen.

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BOXING

Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk: Deontay Wilder trainer makes prediction for undisputed showdown

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Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk
Malik Scott is the latest name to give his thoughts.

After the original fight date got cancelled, it’s full steam ahead for the undisputed heavyweight title fight between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk.

The pair will meet on May 18 in Riyadh live on DAZN PPV for all four heavyweight titles in what is one of, if not the biggest fight of 2024.

This is a contest which has captured the imagination of the boxing world with the hard-hitting Fury coming up against the slick Usyk who was once an undisputed champion at cruiserweight.

However, when speaking to iFL TV, Deontay Wilder’s trainer Malik Scott has claimed that Fury will be looking to come in the contest at a lighter weight which could prove the difference.

“I was going with Usyk, then I’ve seen Tyson Fury 30lbs lighter and it changed my mind,” Scott said.

“He was moving and looking like the old Fury, the lighter Fury that to me is the best Fury and not as vulnerable.

“I’m sitting here and looking at the both of them on a poster and it’s a very good fight. You’ve got Usyk as the southpaw and you know what he brings, then you’ve got Tyson and we all know what he brings when he’s in shape and he’s mentally tough which is the majority of the time.”

Scott has previous experience when it comes to facing Fury. He was in Wilder’s corner for the thrilling trilogy fight against Fury three years ago, but it was a contest which resulted in Wilder being stopped in the eleventh round.

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BOXING

Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk: WBC president explains why the Pope signed and blessed heavyweight championship belt

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We knew the Tyson Fury versus Oleksandr Usyk heavyweight world title fight was attracting worldwide attention. We didn’t realise that stretched all the way to the Vatican!

The Pope has signed and blessed the title belt that Fury and Usyk will box for on May 18.

Britain’s Fury and Ukraine’s Usyk will contest the first undisputed heavyweight title bout in 25 years, fighting for the WBC, WBO, WBA and IBF heavyweight championships live on Sky Sports Box Office.

The WBC has commissioned a new title belt for the Fury vs Usyk fight, with Ukrainian and British emblems on either strap. WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman took the belt to the Pope, who blessed and signed it.

“Pope Francis has a foundation,” Sulaiman told Sky Sports. “I learned there was a programme called Football with Values. I proposed to the Pope to do Boxing with Values. So he accepted, immediately embraced boxing.

“Since that day we have been doing a lot of activations and training and going out trying to teach values through boxing with thousands of people around the world.

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BOXING

Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk – Popular trainer makes his prediction

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Oleksandr Usyk
The heavyweights fight next month.

Shane McGuigan has made his prediction on next month’s heavyweight epic between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk.

The pair clash for all the glory as four world titles will be up for grabs with the winner set to become undisputed champion.

Fury enters the bout on the back of the most disappointing career after he was dropped by Francis Ngannou before securing a controversial split decision.

That performance has made some within the boxing community favour Usyk, and that includes McGuigan.

“On recent form Usyk, I think he might nip it,” said Mcguigan when speaking to The Stomping Ground podcast.

There’s not long to wait to find out if McGuigan’s call will be correct as the rivals meet on May 18 in Saudi Arabia.

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BOXING

Anthony Joshua Waits in the Wings for Tyson Fury-Oleksandr Usyk to Play Out

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Anthony Joshua

Anthony Joshua joked that he barely had time to enjoy Christmas before fight brokers reminded him ahead of New Year’s Eve that he would soon be turning from his late-December stoppage of Otto Wallin to meet former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou in March.

Joshua’s destructive second-round knockout demonstrated that his activity was high and the union with trainer Ben Davison was going swimmingly.

And now Joshua (28-3, 25 KOs) will wait to see what transpires May 18 when the man he lost his three heavyweight belts to, Ukraine’s Oleksandr Usyk (21-0, 14 KOs), steps into a ring in Saudi Arabia against Joshua’s countryman, Tyson Fury (34-0-1, 24 KOs).

Although a rematch clause exists between Usyk and Fury, Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn has said he would like to stage the long-awaited Joshua-Fury bout in the interim, should Fury defeat Usyk.

In discussing Joshua’s future on Friday’s episode of Pro Box TV’s “Deep Waters,” analyst and former welterweight champion Paulie Malignaggi said that he believes Joshua has fully resurrected himself from those consecutive losses to Usyk in 2021 and 2022.

“The new-look Joshua with [former Fury trainer] Davison … I’m buying what they’re selling,” Malignaggi said. “I really feel he’s a threat to Usyk if they fought a third time.”

Joshua’s ability to so convincingly defeat a problematic southpaw in Wallin, who opened up a gash on Fury that required 47 stitches to close, and then destroy Ngannouy after the former UFC heavyweight champion knocked down Fury and took the bout to the scorecards, is a significant turn.

“I’m back on the Joshua train,” said Chris Algieri, another “Deep Waters” analyst. “If I’m making a video game character of a heavyweight, I’m making that guy. He’s got everything: the look, the power, the technique; the attitude is back.”

While Joshua lost some luster in losing his U.S. debut in a stunning TKO loss to Andy Ruiz Jr. at Madison Square Garden in 2019, his revival in this Saudi doubleheader makes him the top challenger to whoever emerges victorious May 18.

The wrinkle is the Usyk-Fury rematch clause, and if that takes precedence following a tightly contested May 18 bout, then Joshua should turn to unbeaten Croatian Filip Hrgovic (17-0), should he defeat Daniel Dubois on June 1 in Saudi Arabia, said Malignaggi.

“Can we start mentioning Filip Hrgovic and make this an actual sport?” Malignaggi roared. “Hrgovic has been avoided. The Joshua-Hrgovic and Fury-Usyk winners should fight.”

Algieri agreed that if Hrgovic “washes, dismantles” Dubois, then he deserves that opportunity to test Joshua’s chin.

“We’ve seen [Joshua] be inconsistent, and that inconsistency starts here,” Algieri said, motioning to his head.

A heavy blow to Joshua’s head “can happen anytime, and it’s like what Mike Tyson said: your life changes with one punch. It’d be very easy for [Joshua] to revert to that guy who struggled against Andy Ruiz.”

With Davison in his corner and a major bout looming, the presence of Joshua adds to the anticipation of activity in the sport’s most compelling division.

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BOXING

Tyson Fury Will Have To Be At His Best If He Is To Fend Off Oleksandr Usyk On May 18

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Oleksandr Usyk

Earlier this week, Fury declared at a news conference to promote the fight that he’s positioned to become the best heavyweight of his era by defeating Oleksandr Usyk, the unbeaten former undisputed cruiserweight champion from Ukraine.

That was the lead discussion point on Friday’s episode of ProBox TV’s “Deep Waters.”

“A focused Tyson Fury might be one of the most dangerous heavyweights in history. How often do we get a focused Tyson Fury, though?” asked former welterweight champion Paulie Malignaggi. “Are we going to get a focused Tyson Fury in his fight against Oleksandr Usyk?”

While reports from camp are that the 35-year-old Fury (34-0-1, 24 KOs) is in phenomenal shape, “Deep Waters” analyst and former 140-pound champion Chris Algieri said that dedication must transition into the ring against the superb Usyk (21-0, 14 KOs).

“Anything less than a 100 per cent focused Tyson Fury loses to Oleksandr Usyk,” Algieri said. “Usyk is basically the DJ Khaled of boxing – ‘All I do is win, win, win.’”

And with two victories over former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua on his resume, Usyk, instead, is better positioned to seize the claim Fury seeks about generational greatness.

“Usyk might be the best cruiserweight since [Evander] Holyfield … that’s why we’re here,” Malignaggi said. “This fight is for supremacy of the generation.”

Fury has yet to fight Joshua, and Joshua (28-3, 25 KOs) trumped Fury by starching Ngannou by second-round knockout last month following a convincing December stoppage over Otto Wallin, who gave Fury fits in their bout.

“His performances lately have been sharp and destructive,” Algieri said. “If Usyk wins [May 18], I don’t think anyone cares to see the [third] Joshua fight, but if Tyson Fury wins, Joshua’s a whole different guy now. He’s like the Joshua of old, and I literally fancy him against almost anyone in the world. I could see him beating Tyson Fury.”

A Fury triumph over Usyk “sets up a mega, mega showdown [between Brits], and if the winner is Fury, then, yes, hands down, he’s the greatest heavyweight of our generation.”

That’s a serious pending back-to-back workload.

Usyk, a 2012 Olympic gold medalist, is “multi-layered,” Malignaggi said, but at age 37, there are questions about how well his gifted legs will allow him to maneuver when confronting the ominous size of Fury in what is effectively a 50-50 fight at the sports books.

“Usyk is a tactician, a strategist who creates beautiful angles [and] uses the fundamentals of being a southpaw, [skills] and Team Usyk [have said Fury] is susceptible to some of the tricks that southpaws do,” said Algieri.

For instance, look at the cut that Wallin caused on Fury, requiring 47 stitches to close.

“[Usyk] stays invisible by staying outside that lead foot, [fighting from] the weak side, he always wins the battle of positioning,” Algieri continued. “But he’s got to be on his Ps and Qs all night long. Twelve rounds is a very long time with a guy who’s going to have a functional weight advantage of 55-to-60 pounds. Tyson Fury is a massive human being and he knows how to use his size. He’s a big, athletic, slick guy who moves well, has a good jab and knows how to use that ‘dirty’ boxing on the inside. He’ll lean on you.”

That physicality is a major issue to watch.

“Is Usyk going to be able to use those legs for enough rounds to avoid the size advantage of Tyson Fury?” Algieri said. “[Fury] has a great gas tank and is very fluid.”

Yet … .

“Usyk’s never lost. There is no game plan to beat him,” Algieri said.

Solve that remarkably complex riddle, then beat countryman Joshua, and then Fury can proclaim anything he wants about his standing among the heavyweights and the sport itself.

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BOXING

Tyson Fury Is a Heavyweight Great When Focused – But Will He Be Against Oleksandr Usyk?

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On Friday’s episode of ProBox TV’s  “Deep Waters,” analyst Paulie Malignaggi says Tyson Fury is an all-time great heavyweight when his mind is right. But he questions whether that will be the case when Fury takes on Oleksandr Usyk for the undisputed heavyweight title on May 18 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The “Deep Waters” crew weighs Fury’s legacy, Usyk’s rightful place among the heavyweights and where Anthony Joshua fits in.

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BOXING

Tyson Fury coach explains fighter’s tactics ahead of Oleksandr Usyk undisputed fight

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Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury
One of boxing’s biggest fights is almost here.

The clock is ticking ahead of the undisputed heavyweight title fight between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk.

The pair will finally go head-to-head on May 18 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and it will be shown live on DAZN PPV with the winner becoming the first heavyweight boxer to hold all four world heavyweight titles.

This fight will be interesting to fans from a tactical perspective with the hard-hitting Fury coming up against an opponent in Usyk who is known for his slick movement inside the ring and the Ukrainian has already beaten three British heavyweight stars in Derek Chisora, Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois.

Speaking to Boxing Social, Fury’s trainer Sugar Hill Steward, discussed his fighter’s preparations for this historic occasion.

“I’ve thought about everything possible,” Steward said.

“I don’t just wake up and say oh, knockout, that’s it. I do have a brain that I use. I do a lot of thinking.

“I have to think of everything that could happen, should happen, maybe happen. I put all that together and make it work.”

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