Oleksandr Usyk Edges Tyson Fury by Split Decision, Now Undisputed

ESPN ^ | May 18, 2024 | Mike Coppinger

[nickcarraway]

There hadn't been an undisputed heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis defeated Evander Holyfield in a rematch of all-time greats in November 1999 in Las Vegas.

Halfway around the world -- and nearly 25 years later -- another undisputed champion in boxing's glamour division was crowned when Oleksandr Usyk floored Tyson Fury in Round 9 en route to a split-decision victory early Sunday at sold-out Kingdom Arena.

The wait was well worth it as both men delivered a fight befitting the prize for which they were competing.

One judge scored it 114-113 for Fury but was overruled by scores of 114-113 and 115-112 for Usyk, who handed Fury his first professional loss.

Oleksandr Usyk dropped Tyson Fury in the pivotal ninth round, the ninth time Fury has been knocked down in his career. Photo by Richard Pelham/Getty Images "It's [a] big opportunity for me, for my family, for my country, for history," said Usyk, who resides in war-torn Ukraine. "It's [a] great day."

The two-fight deal for this long-awaited matchup included a planned rematch Oct. 12 in Riyadh, where Fury will look to even the score and move onto a superfight with Anthony Joshua in the first quarter of 2025.

Usyk's promoter, K2 Promotions' Alexander Krassyuk, told ESPN at the postfight news conference that Usyk was headed to a local hospital for an MRI on his jaw. There was concern Usyk suffered a broken jaw. However, Krassyuk said there is "no doubt" Usyk would be ready for the planned Oct. 12 rematch.

Punch Stats PUNCHES FURY USYK Total landed 157 170 Total thrown 496 407 Percent 32% 42% Jabs landed 62 48 Jabs thrown 286 147 Percent 22% 33% Power landed 95 122 Power thrown 210 260 Percent 45% 47% -- Courtesy of CompuBox "I believe I won the fight, but I'm not going to sit here and cry and make excuses," said Fury, who owned a 39-pound and six-inch advantage over Usyk. "I believe he won a few of the rounds, but I won the majority of them. What can you do? We both put on a good fight, the best we could do. ... But make no mistake, I won that fight ... and I'll be back. We've got a rematch clause."

Usyk (22-0, 14 KOs) appeared on the brink of finishing Fury in Round 9 after he landed 14 flush shots as the Englishman wobbled around the ring. The last of those punches caused Fury to slump into the ropes, which held him up for the ninth knockdown of his illustrious career.

Before Usyk could pounce on Fury (34-1-1, 24 KOs) following the count, the round ended. And when Round 10 began, Fury had recovered following the minute of rest.

[Gary from Dayton]

Are both of Usyk’s ears intact?

[Kazan]

A Russian boxing heavyweight champion. That should drive some of the Zeepers here crazy.

[Adder]

He’s Ukrainian...and he has a ton of class.

[ANKE69]

Nice language.....

[Redmen4ever]

We haven’t had such tremendous heavyweights since the Golden Age of boxing.

[Made In The USA]

Watched it with friends. Fury had height, reach, and an overdose of showmanship and taunting. But Ursyk was a man on a mission and eventually taught Fury the Mike Tyson lesson. Fury got popped and got so wobbly he was lucky the bell rang. Ursyk wanted it more.

[dennisw]

The smaller man took out the larger lumbering man

[dennisw]

Physical Attributes

Attribute	Oleksandr Usyk	Tyson Fury
Height	6 ft 3 in (190 cm)	6 ft 9 in (206 cm)
Reach	78 in (198 cm)	85 in (216 cm)
Weight	Approx. 220 lbs	Approx. 255 lbs
Stance	Southpaw	Orthodox
Age (as of May 2024)	37	35

Fury has significant advantages in height (6 inches taller) and reach (7 inches longer) over Usyk. He also outweighs Usyk by around 35 lbs.

[Kazan]

If he lives in Crimea, he’s Russian.

[x]

He lives in Kyiv now. His parents are both Ukrainian. They moved from other parts of Ukraine to Crimea. More than a few Ukranians did. He posted this to his Instagram, “Donetsk is Ukraine. Luhansk is Ukraine. Zaporizhzhia is Ukraine. Crimea is Ukraine. Kherson is Ukraine. Glory to Ukraine.” One can wonder why he’s not in the trenches now.

[Kazan]

Crimea absolutely is, by choice, part of the Russian Federation and will never, ever part of Ukraine again.

[Kazan]

In 2021, Usyk, who grew up in Crimea, was criticised for appearing in a documentary about the Pechersk Lavra, the ancient Kyiv monastery then inhabited by monks loyal to the Moscow patriarchate. The series was presented by Oksana Marchenko, the wife of the pro-Kremlin Ukrainian politician Viktor Medvedchuk. The couple, who are friends of Putin, were placed under sanctions in Ukraine in 2021 for allegedly financing terrorism. They now live in Russia.

[Adder]

No he’s not.

His allegiance is to Ukraine...he carries the Ukrainian flag, he wears Ukrainian colors.

And he always has.

[Greetings_Puny_Humans]

"Crimea... by choice" Crimea had 120% voter turnout with 90% approval to be annexed, with lives streams of the voting booths being filled almost entirely by Russian soldiers that Russia, up until recently, kept denying were Russian soldiers. While that was going on, Russkies with grenade launchers guarded the Rada, and a Chechen Tartar who had the guts to protest publicly was dragged from the street--in full view of CCTV--and found tortured to death later. If memory serves, the killing wound was a knife through his eyeball.