Oleksandr Usyk defeats Tyson Fury by unanimous decision in fierce rematch
Oleksandr Usyk has defeated Tyson Fury for a second time in Riyadh to remain the heavyweight champion of the world and the undisputed king of the boxing ring, this time doing it by unanimous decision.
All three judges scored the fight 116-112 in Usyk's favour.
Usyk had won their previous fight earlier this year by split decision, having managed to land some mighty blows against the previously unbeaten Fury, and at the rematch he came out on top once again.
While Fury had declared that boxing fans could 'watch me go to work on this f**ker', it was Usyk's fists that once again proved why they're the best in the business as they did a job on Fury.
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After his defeat last time around, Fury promised to cut down on the showboating and the joking before the fight, but it ultimately did him no real favours as Usyk came out on top once more.
Before the fight the Ukrainian's camp had been concerned about the size of Fury's beard, though boxing officials confirmed that everything was OK for the pair to knock seven shades of s**t out of each other.
The fight started in a somewhat cagey manner as each fighter tried to find an opening and throw their punches, with Usyk's arms moving near constantly in an attempt to counter the superior reach of Fury.
Fury had won the previous three rematches of his career, but ultimately couldn't find what he needed to defeat Usyk and avenge his previous defeat. The Ukrainian was just too good.
While Fury looked better in the opening rounds of the fight, just as he did last time he fought Usyk, the champion stayed in it and looked increasingly impressive as the fight went on.
Fury seemed to struggle more and more the longer the fight went and it was here that Usyk landed some solid punches.
In the end the story of the second fight ended up being reasonably similar to the way the first went, it went to a dozen rounds and Usyk grew into the fight as it went on.
In round 11, Usyk landed a couple of very important blows to Fury's head while Fury seemed like his tank was draining and the veritable man-mountain looked to be lumbering.
By the end of the fight it was clear that Usyk was in the ascendancy, and the judges all agreed that he'd had the best of it.
Since he remains undefeated, the next question for Usyk is whether he will ever step into the ring with an opponent that manages to defeat him or if it will be time, that undefeated opponent, which ultimately spells an end to the 37-year-old's career.
Usyk celebrates his 38th birthday next month and the question of how long he can keep this up will no doubt be hanging over his career, but such is the case for every great boxer.
While he said he'd want to go home and have a rest, Usyk was confronted in the ring by Daniel Dubois who appeared to want to be the next man to fight the champion.
The win means that Usyk has done the double over Fury in heavyweight boxing, which is an incredibly impressive feat that must surely leave fans of the sport in no doubt as to who the finest heavyweight boxer in the world currently is.
Meanwhile, just as speculation over what Usyk does next is inevitable the question hanging over Tyson Fury is where he goes from here.
Topics: Oleksandr Usyk, Tyson Fury, Boxing, Sport
Joe Harker