The rematch between Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury will take place on 21 December, according to the chairman of Saudi Arabia’s general entertainment authority.
Usyk added Fury’s WBC belt to his WBA, WBO and IBF titles with a split-decision victory this month in Riyadh, which made the Ukrainian the first undisputed world heavyweight champion for almost a quarter of a century.
With an immediate rematch clause written into the fighters’ contracts, it was expected they would clash again in October, but a December date has been announced instead.
Turki Alalshikh appeared to confirm the news on X yesterday, stating: “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...”
Earlier this week, Fury’s promoter Frank Warren said he was confident his fighter could turn things around in the rematch.
“I think he can, he believes he can,” Warren told Sky Sports. “It was a fight of two halves, Tyson knows what he has to do and I’m sure Usyk does. Both of those guys were in an absolute war, that has taken a lot out of both of them. It will be interesting to see when it does happen who it has impacted the most.”
Fury was convinced he had won the initial fight on 18 May and indicated there were no thoughts of retirement, despite having earned in the region of £100m for facing Usyk.
“I ain’t boxing because I’ve got no money, I’m boxing because I love it. I’m 36 in a few months [his birthday is 12 August]. I’ve been boxing since I was a child,” Fury said at the time.
“Where does it all end? Do I have a hundred fights and break down and end up in a wheelchair? While I’m still loving the game – and I was having fun in there – then I will continue to do it. When I can’t do it any more, I’ll pack it up.”
Usyk’s training camp for the first contest was extended when Fury suffered a cut in training, forcing the original date of 17 February to be postponed and the Olympic gold medallist revealed the sacrifices he made to be ready.
“I don’t want to think about boxing now,” Usyk said in his post-fight press conference. “My camp started in September 2023 and I worked for nine months. I missed Happy New Year, I missed my son’s birthday, I missed my other son’s birthday, I missed my daughter’s birthday and then the birth of my daughter.
“I also missed family holidays. I was only focused on this fight. Now I’m happy and I want to go back home.”