Everything You Need to Know Ahead of Oleksandr Usyk vs Tyson Fury Fight

Following the disappointing news that Oleksandr Usyk vs Tyson Fury had to be pushed back earlier this year due to the ‘Gypsy King’ sustaining an eye injury in training, the countdown to the rescheduled contest is back on.

The pair will trade blows with the coveted title of becoming the unified heavyweight champion of the world on the line, and there is very little to separate them both in the Fury vs Usyk odds.

So, without further ado, here is a comprehensive guide to everything you need to know ahead of the blockbuster bout.

When and where is the fight taking place?

Despite having to be rearranged, the fight is still set to take place at the newly built, state-of-the-art Kingdom Arean in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia — which is where Tyson Fury beat Francis Ngannou last October and the venue has since hosted Anthony Joshua’s fights against Otto Wallin and Ngannou.

The new date for the heavyweight showdown, however, is May 18. That gives Fury roughly three months to recover from his nasty eye injury, while Usyk will no doubt have been using his time wisely to hone his skills and develop his master plan to dethrone the Gypsy King.

What’s on the line for Tyson Fury?

As already mentioned, the chance to become the unified heavyweight champion hangs in the balance in what is being dubbed the ‘Ring of Fire’.

Usyk holds the WBA, IBF, WBO, and IBO belts after stripping ‘AJ’ of the silverware at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in September 2021.

Fury holds the missing gem in the Ukrainian’s crown, the WBC title — which he won when defeating Deontay Wilder at the MGM Grand Garden Arena back in 2020.

What are the odds on Oleksandr Usyk?

Ahead of the initial fight in February, Fury was the heavy favourite with odds of 8/11 while Usyk was the underdog at 6/5 in the boxing betting.

However, the market is no longer quite as clear-cut. Fury remains the more likely winner at 5/6, but only by an ever-so-slight margin as Usyk is now priced at 1/1.

The most likely method of victory for both fighters is on points, with Fury 7/4 to win by decision while Usyk is 2/1 to be awarded the dub on the judges’ scorecards.

The Gypsy King is 11/4 to win by KO/TKO, with Usyk priced at 4/1 to stop Fury inside the 12 rounds.

Who’s on the Fury vs Usyk Undercard?

While the main event has the potential to be a ‘Fight of the Year’ contender, there are also some fantastic bouts on the undercard.

The co-headline will see a much-anticipated rematch between Jai Opetaia and Mairis Briedis for the IBF and Ring Magazine cruiserweight titles.

Opetaia stunned Briedis to win the belts almost two years ago, and the pair are hoping to settle the score once and for all in Saudi.

Joe Cordina will also attempt to defend his IBF super-featherweight title against Anthony Cacace in an all-British showdown.

Cordina regained his IBF title by beating Shavkat Rakhimov last April and he successfully retained it against Edward Vazquez in November.

The main undercard also features a WBC final eliminator between Agit Kabayel and Frank Sanchez, a lightweight bout between Mark Chamberlain and Joshua Oluwaseun Wahab, and a cruiserweight clash that see Sergey Kovalev take on Robin Sirwan Safar.