Forget Anthony Joshua. Tyson Fury is looking to beat Oleksandr Usyk in Saudi Arabia this weekend, then rematch him in 2025.
Sorry, boxing fans: if Tyson Fury beats Oleksandr Usyk this weekend in Riyadh, we won’t be seeing him fight Anthony Joshua.
Tyson Fury vs. Anthony Joshua has been a white whale for combat sports fans, and its absence is felt even as we get all of these wild heavyweight fights in Saudi Arabia. One of those fights is Usyk vs. Fury 2, the sequel to a fight that saw Usyk become unified heavyweight champion via a split decision win (watch the highlights here).
Tyson Fury is coming into Saturday’s superfight more confident than ever, saying he was fighting at 40% ability in the first bout. Now promising 110%, he intends to clobber Usyk and force a trilogy.
“When I win on Saturday, I think there’s got to be a trilogy next year for sure,” Fury told Saudi network Al Arabiya. “Fighting Usyk on Saturday, and the one after, would be fantastic for me. It’s not revenge, just me smashing his face in. Not in a million years will I walk away after this. All great dance partners have trilogies. Facts.”
As for a fight with Anthony Joshua?
“Joshua’s in tatters,” Fury declared. “He has got to pick up the pieces from his last fight.”
Anthony Joshua was on a serious upswing since losing his own duology to Usyk in 2021-2022. He went on a four fight win streak including three stoppages in a row before suffering a shocking KO defeat at the hands of Daniel Dubois in September.
And while Riyadh Season organizer Turki Alalshikh has said Fury vs. Joshua is still high on his list of fights to make, even he can’t go against contracts already signed. And according to Fury’s promoter Frank Warren, they have a third fight with Usyk signed in writing should they win the rematch.
“It does [happen] because it’s contracted,” Warren told Boxing News. “And whatever happens, that would be the case if Tyson wins — providing nobody retires.”
It all comes down to what happens on Saturday in Riyadh between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk. How do you see their big rematch going, Maniacs? Sound off in the comments below!
