Outside Source
Tyson Fury knows he’s getting a rematch after falling to Oleksandr Usyk by split decision on Saturday in Saudi Arabia, but he believes he should be going home with the win.
Following a 12-round war that saw Usyk nearly score a knockout in the ninth, Fury still battled back and earned the nod on one scorecard. Unfortunately for Fury, the other two judges disagreed. Usyk claimed the undisputed heavyweight title with scores of 115-112 and 114-113, with the third official giving the same 114-113 score to Fury.
After the decision was announced, Fury congratulated Usyk on a job well done but he feels there may have been some bias shown towards his Ukrainian opponent as he referenced the ongoing turmoil there following a Russian invasion in 2022.
“I believe I won that fight,” Fury said in the ring. “I believe he won a few of the rounds but I won the majority of them. I believe it was one of those decisions in boxing. We both put on a good fight, the best we could do.
“His country’s at war so people are siding with the country at war. But make no mistake, I won that fight, in my opinion. I’ll be back. I’ve got a rematch clause. I think Jesus for all the victories he’s given me. I’ve got a split decision loss to a good little man and I thank him again, in the mighty name of Jesus. We go back home to our families and we run it back October. Good luck to Oleksandr, well done, God bless you.”
The closely contested fight saw several rounds that could have gone either way, though a couple of rounds made it easier on the judges. In Round 6, Fury hurt Usyk with a series of punches, and then Usyk stormed back with the near-finish in Round 9.
Fury’s promoter Frank Warren joined him in the ring and deferred to “The Gypsy King” when it came to his request for an immediate rematch, which was afforded to either fighter who walked away with a loss.
“Well that’s what the contract says,” Warren said. “It’s what he wants. It’s his call, it’s Tyson’s call. Whatever he wants to do, it’s up to him. The clause in the contract says an immediate rematch.”
Regardless of how he feels about the result, Fury knows he’ll get the chance to avenge the loss with hopes that he’ll face Usyk again before the end of 2024.
That means other potential challengers such as Anthony Joshua will likely have to wait until 2025 for a shot at the title because for now, Fury vs. Usyk 2 appears destined to happen next.
“For sure, we go back,” Fury said about the rematch. “Have a lot of rest up, spend some time with our families and we’ll get it back on in October. Like I said, I believe I won the fight but I’m not going to sit here and cry and make excuses. It was a good fight, thank you.”
This article first appeared at MMA Fighting – All Posts
Help support MMACrazies.com when you shop Amazon by starting your online Amazon shopping at MMACrazies.com/recommends/amazon. You are not charged extra, but we receive a small and very helpful commission on everything you purchase. Thanks for thinking of us every time you shop at Amazon.
