“I will cause pain”
232 million fight: The boxing spectacle of the year
12/20/2024 – 8:38 a.mReading time: 2 minutes
Tyson Fury and Alexander Usyk stared into each other’s eyes for eleven minutes. The tension before Saturday’s fight was palpable. It started with a war of words.
“There has been enough talk,” Tyson Fury said on Thursday. The “Gypsy King” made it clear what he plans to do when he steps into the boxing ring. “I’ve talked and joked my whole career. This time I’m serious.” Alexander Usyk should feel the lack of fun. “I’m going to do some damage, I’m going to cause some pain. I’m going to put him on the injured list for sure,” Fury added.
On Saturday evening, the two boxing greats will meet in the Saudi capital Riyadh at 11 p.m. German time. It is the rematch after Usyk won the first fight in May. The fans’ anticipation is huge – and was already fueled before the fight. For eleven minutes, Tyson Fury and Alexander Usyk stared into each other’s eyes during the obligatory stare down.
At the press conference, Fury dished out a lot, while Usyk remained calm. In Riyadh, the Ukrainian did not want to respond to his opponent’s provocations. It’s just an “imagination” for the cameras, “everything will happen in the ring on Saturday.” Usyk had inflicted Fury’s first defeat as a professional boxer in May, thereby unifying all four relevant world titles and becoming the undisputed heavyweight champion. However, he has since had to relinquish the IBF belt because he did not want to defend it against a mandatory challenger due to the rematch taking place on Saturday.
Money will have played a central role in the decision. Usyk reportedly received around 36 million euros for the fight in May, Fury even 100 million. The 70:30 split in Fury’s favor at the time is no longer likely to hold; Usyk is expected to get a little more from the new fight purse of around 232 million euros. Fury will be able to get over it.
“I’m only doing this for the money, of course,” Fury clarified. “All prizefighters, if they tell the truth, do it for the money. I don’t want to work for nothing, I want to earn as much as I can get.”