Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk are gearing up for a rematch on December 21 in Riyadh. The fight comes after Usyk's split decision victory over Fury in May, which made him the first undisputed heavyweight champion in over two decades.
The first fight saw Fury land some heavy uppercuts in the middle rounds, but Usyk fought back hard. In the eighth round, Fury's nose started bleeding. The ninth round turned out to be particularly tough for Fury, as he faced a barrage of unanswered shots, leading to a standing eight count from the referee.
After the fight, some people pointed to the chaos in Fury's corner as a key factor in his defeat. With SugarHill Steward as head trainer, Andy Lee as coach, and John Fury, Tyson's father, all giving input, some in the sport believe the multiple voices contributed to Fury's loss.
But Fury doesn't see it that way. In a recent feature with TNT Sports, where both fighters rewatched their first bout, Fury addressed the criticism:
"Listen, people can have opinions and what they want to say but at the end of the day they're not in there doing the fighting. It's really unimportant what other people think of what was going on in my corner. If I'm happy then the world's happy, and I'm happy."
Despite the controversy, Fury's keeping his team the same for the rematch. Whether we'll hear one clear voice from his corner on fight night remains to be seen.
The stakes are high for both fighters. Usyk will put his WBC, WBO, and WBA titles on the line, having recently vacated the IBF belt. Fury, on the other hand, aims to avenge his previous defeat and reclaim his spot at the top of the heavyweight division.
As December 21 approaches, boxing fans worldwide will be watching to see if Fury can turn the tables or if Usyk will cement his status as the undisputed king of the heavyweights.
