Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury are set to go head-to-head in a mouthwatering rematch – which is being planned for the 21st of December.
The first fight saw the two rivals split a total purse fund of $150 million (116m).
While both men earned a jaw-dropping amount for their first encounter, the fight purse is set to skyrocket in the second showdown.
Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury are set to go head-to-head in a mouthwatering rematch – which is being planned for the 21st of December in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. While both men earned a jaw-dropping amount for their first encounter, the fight purse is set to skyrocket in the second showdown.
The Ukrainian became the first undisputed heavyweight champion of the world since Lennox Lewis in 1999 when he defeated ‘The Gypsy King’ earlier this month.
Usyk secured a tight split decision win on the judges’ scorecards after an epic battle at Kingdom Arena. The official score totals read 115-112 Usyk, 114-113 Fury & 114-113 Usyk.
GIVEMESPORT Key Statistic: Oleksandr Usyk is just the 25th man in history to reign as undisputed heavyweight champion – and the first fighter to ever do it in the four-belt era.
The decisive moment came in the ninth round. Usyk landed a number of stinging shots – which appeared to nearly knock Fury out. The Brit was left dazed on the canvas and was saved by the bell, with many believing that the contest should’ve been stopped.
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How Much Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk Will Earn for Their Rematch
Both men will bank a fortune
An immediate rematch was a contractual clause agreed to when Fury and Usyk agreed to meet for the undisputed heavyweight championship of the world – and Alalshikh has already booked the contest to kick off the latest edition of Riyadh Season.
Speaking to ESPN, His Excellency called Fury vs Usyk the “crown jewel of his efforts” to rebuild the sport of boxing and declared that he plans to stage the rematch on either the 12th or 13th of October this year.
However, that’ll now not be the case, with the epic rematch now taking place in December, serving as an early Christmas present for boxing fans.
Taking to X – formerly known as Twitter – Alalshikh tweeted: “The rematch between the Undisputed Champion Oleksandr Usyk and the Champion Tyson Fury is now scheduled on the 21 of December 2024 during Riyadh Season…The world will watch another historical fight again…Our commitment to boxing fans continues…We hope you enjoy it.”
The first fight saw the two rivals split a total purse fund of $150 million (£116m). The split was 70/30 in Fury’s favour, meaning that ‘The Gypsy King’ walked away with a career-high $105m payday, while Usyk pocketed $45m.
It should be noted that the Brit also previously agreed to donate $1m to the relief effort in Ukraine in their wake of the conflict with Russia. However, the 35-year-old will still comfortably surpass his previous highest purse which was the $78m he received for facing Francis Ngannou last time out.
On that night, Fury only narrowly edged out the former UFC heavyweight champion via a split-decision victory. Many observers even argued that Ngannou deserved the win, but the ringside judges disagreed – allowing Fury to avoid a potentially embarrassing defeat, albeit in an exhibition contest.
As per The Sun, those figures are set to skyrocket, with the pair set to split £150 million. The Ukrainian is set to bank the bigger payday following his win in the first bout.
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Spencer Oliver Reveals Tactical Change Fury Must Make
The Brit showed signs that he can beat Usyk
Particularly in the middle rounds of their epic contest in Riyadh, the Brit imposed his size and had Usyk on the backfoot. Popular boxing pundit, Spencer Oliver, believes that he should adopt the same approach in the rematch.
“I think that, with Tyson Fury, he’s a great fighter and I think that he’ll know Oleksandr Usyk, he’ll know his strengths, he’ll know his weaknesses. Fury has to use his strengths to his advantage and that’s his height, his reach, he needs to rough Usyk up a little bit more,” he told GiveMeSport on behalf of talkSPORT BET.
“I think he gave Usyk too much respect and too much space and he allowed Usyk to push him on the backfoot. It was probably the wrong tactics from Fury. He should’ve held his ground, he should’ve pushed Usyk on the backfoot and change the pattern of the fight because, once Usyk got into a rhythm, as we know that he does when he gets into a rhythm it’s very difficult to break it.”
