RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Tyson Fury danced and sang some of his favorite hits during a light workout Wednesday night, three days before his undisputed heavyweight championship clash with Oleksandr Usyk.
England's Fury, 35, wrapped his hands to AC/DC's anthem “You Shook Me All Night Long.” He slid around the ring with trainer SugarHill Steward and shook his right fist to The Killer's “Mr. Brightside.”
“I'm having fun. I always do, don't I?” Fury (34-0-1, 24 KOs) told ESPN after his 15-minute workout at the Boulevard City outdoor entertainment center. “I enjoy all these weeks of fighting.”
But Saturday's fight is a little more special. The winner will be crowned boxing's first undisputed heavyweight champion since November 1999, when Lennox Lewis defeated Evander Holyfield in a rematch.
Lewis, who will be front row on Saturday, and Holyfield, are two all-time greats, as are Fury and Usyk. It's rare for a heavyweight to be recognized as one of the pound-for-pound best in the world. Usyk is No. 3 on ESPN's list and Fury is No. 10.
“It's the fight of the century,” said Fury, who suffered a cut in sparring that postponed this fight from its original date of February 17. “[An undisputed heavyweight championship fight] “It has never happened in this century before and we are looking forward to putting on a fantastic show.”
Fury's resume features a classic trilogy with Deontay Wilder that includes two wins and a draw, with the final fight named Fight of the Year by ESPN and KO of the Year in 2021. Fury has been boxing's lineal heavyweight champion since defeating to the Ukrainian Wladimir Klitschko in 2015. .
Now, Fury will face another Ukrainian in Usyk, who, like Holyfield, is a former undisputed cruiserweight champion who won the unified heavyweight championship. Usyk, 37, did so by defeating Anthony Joshua in a pair of fights, ruining plans for a Fury-Joshua fight that would have represented the biggest fight in UK history.
Fury still hopes to face Joshua next year, but will first seek a contracted rematch with Usyk (21-0, 14 KOs) later this year. Turki Alalshikh, president of Saudi Arabia's General Entertainment Authority, told ESPN last month that the return fight is scheduled for October 12 or 13. After that, if Fury wins at least one of the two fights, there are plans for a showdown with Joshua. next year.
Joshua, the former unified champion, scored a second-round KO of former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou in March. Fury was knocked down by Ngannou in October in a shocking performance, fighting to win a split decision against a man making his boxing debut.
Fury appeared to be out of shape for that non-title fight, but on Wednesday he appeared to be much fitter, throwing his jab while bouncing on his toes.
“I'm always focused, ready to fight,” Fury said, “and that's the reason I've been undefeated in 16 years.”
But he's never faced a fighter like Usyk, one with an excellent southpaw jab, excellent footwork and the ring acumen to match Fury. Usyk could give up to 40 pounds on fight night. However, he has proven in four heavyweight fights that he can overcome his lack of size with superior boxing skill.
Fury is the slight favorite at -120, according to ESPN BET, while Usyk has even odds. If Fury can end Usyk's undefeated streak and take his three titles as well, he should cement himself as the best heavyweight of his era.
“I'm not really interested in all that,” Fury said as he walked away from the ring. “[It will] establish myself as a mega, super rich heavyweight who can feed his family and give them whatever they want for breakfast, dinner and tea.”
