The Briton Tyson Fury also loses out to the title defender in the rematch. Usyk continues to dominate the heavyweight division.
Alexander Usyk remains the measure of all things in heavyweight boxing. The Ukrainian won the rematch against Britain’s Tyson Fury by unanimous decision over twelve rounds in Riyadh on Saturday. The 37-year-old successfully defended the WBA, WBO and WBC world championship belts.
With his 23rd victory in 23 professional fights, Usyk also triumphed in the second duel with Fury, after he had unified the titles of all four major associations and become the undisputed world champion by a narrow points victory last May.
However, he quickly lost this status again because he did not want to defend the IBF belt against a mandatory challenger in the Fury rematch and resigned. Fury’s compatriot Daniel Dubois now holds that title. For Fury, meanwhile, it was the second defeat in 37 professional fights (34 wins, one draw).
It is now unclear what will happen next. If Fury had won, a clause for a third fight would have taken effect. Even before the fight, Usyk had toyed with the idea of returning to the cruiserweight division, where he had also been the undisputed champion.
