The first fight between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk in May was closely contested, with two judges scoring it for Usyk (115-112 and 114-113), giving him a split-decision victory at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Both Fury, who went into the fight as WBC champion and lineal champion, and Usyk, who owned the WBA, WBO and IBF belts, showed their strengths but also weaknesses throughout the fight. They must make some changes to avoid the same mistakes and create an effective strategy for their rematch.
Usyk landed 170 punches on Fury (the most landed by any of his opponents), including an incredible 70 body punches to 46 by Fury. Will Fury be able to avoid Usyk's body attack? Can Fury out-jab Usyk and keep him out of range? Let's look at how the rematch Saturday could play out.
Take a look at how heavyweights Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury compare ahead of their much-anticipated rematch on Saturday, December 21.
Fury's performance in the first fight revealed several critical mistakes that occasionally hindered his effectiveness. One major issue was his excessive use of the long guard (lead hand extended straight out), a technique used to control the space between fighters, creating a barrier-like defense. But while this maneuver allowed Fury to control Usyk in spots, keeping him at bay. Despite the long guard helping Fury, the fleet-footed Ukrainian often slipped past the extended arm with precise head movement. Usyk's mid-entry (simultaneously slipping past the long guard into midrange and throwing the straight left to the body) slowed Fury down in the last half of the fight.
Fury often walked right into Usyk's power, a common pitfall of Fury when facing a southpaw. His tendency to move back in a straight line made
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