Tyson Fury will weigh at least 50lb more than Oleksandr Usyk when the two men fight for the world heavyweight championship in Riyadh. At the official weigh-in on Friday night, Fury scaled 281lb while wearing all his clothes, including a heavy black leather jacket to keep him warm in the biting December cold. Usyk, the defending champion, weighed 226lb after removing only his tracksuit top.
The 55lb weight discrepancy will be slightly reduced in the ring – but it is striking that Fury weighed 19lb more than he did on the scales before their first fight in May. Usyk was just 3lb heavier than last time and, once he has stripped down to his boxing trunks and boots, he will be very close to the exact weight he was when he became the undisputed world heavyweight champion after he defeated Fury in an extraordinary and very close fight.
It had been widely expected that Fury would come in much heavier for the rematch. But the extent of the weight disparity was still surprising and it offers the most graphic indication yet that Fury, as he has promised all week, will be intent on walking down Usyk in the belief that the former world cruiserweight champion can be stopped by sheer physicality and bludgeoning force.
Fury is also six inches taller than Usyk. Carrying so much weight, he will not be looking to dance and move fluidly across the canvas. He will lean down heavily on Usyk, trying to drain him of energy – and of course he will plant his feet and, with aggression and power, look to blast his way through the defence of the brilliant and intelligent Ukrainian. Usyk is a master strategist and Fury has told him clearly what he is about to confront. The unbeaten champion is never intimidated in the ring and he will be ready for Fury’s coming onslaught.
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After the brooding face-off which dominated the press conference on Thursday night, both men were kept apart after the weigh-in. They looked calm and relaxed as they stared out at the crowd and then, with a big chunk of space separating them, Fury and Usyk turned to face each other. They maintained eye contact for three seconds before breaking away.
Usyk suggested initially that he had “nothing” to say before briefly expressing thanks to God, his family and his team.
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Fury, meanwhile, had already left the stage. Declining to be interviewed, he had uttered just one word to further signify his intentions against Usyk: “War.”
