Oleksandr Usyk Wins Undisputed Heavyweight Bout vs Tyson Fury
In a wonderfully entertaining bout, unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk (22-0, 14 KO’s) defeated WBC heavyweight champion Tyson “The Gypsy King” Fury (34-1-1, 24 KO’s) by way of split decision to become the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world. This was the first time this distinction has been crowned since 1999, when it was last held by Lennox Lewis.
To open the match, Usyk went right after Fury. For the most part, Fury fought off the back foot, slinked along the ropes and clowned. While in pursuit of The Gypsy King, Usyk busied himself delivering straight punches to the chest and belly. With the arrival of the fourth and fifth rounds, Fury hit a solid groove and took control. The Gypsy King orchestrated this by nailing Usyk with a series of picture-perfect right uppercuts to the chin and torso.
Fury appeared to be cruising along until round eight. An overhand left busted up his nose and threw him out of his rhythm. The same troublesome overhand left hammered Fury’s chin in the ninth. This time the shot jellied his chin. The Gypsy King would spend a somewhat lengthy period eating shots and literally drunk shuffling all around the ring. After finally sagging in the ropes, he was administered a standing eight count.
The next several rounds would see both competitors fight at a bit of a measured pace. While neither truly threw caution in the wind, both Fury and Usyk bit down and tried to make a good last impression for the judges in the twelfth. Following the final bell, when the scorecards were read, Usyk prevailed by way of split decision to the tune of 115-112 (Usyk), 114-113 (Fury) and 114-113 (Usyk).
During their post-fight interviews, both Usyk and Fury expressed an interest in staging an immediate rematch.
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