Notebook: Fury far more reserved than usual ahead of Usyk rematch
Last-minute change to Usyk-Fury judging panel; Angelo Leo on the road; deal near for Catterall-Barboza; Rosa claims junior flyweight title; Quick hits; Show and tell
A note to Fight Freaks Unite readers: I created Fight Freaks Unite in January 2021 and eight months later it also became available for paid subscriptions for additional content — and as a way to help keep this newsletter going and for readers to support independent journalism. If you haven’t upgraded to a paid subscription please consider it. If you have already, I truly appreciate it! Also, consider a gift subscription for the Fight Freak in your life.
The usually boisterous, over-the-top, wholly outlandish Tyson Fury has not been seen much during the lead up to his rematch with lineal/unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk.
Instead, the former champion has been far more subdued than usual as he prepares to step into the ring with the man who took his undefeated record and the lineal and WBC titles from him in a narrow split decision on May 18 to become the first four-belt undisputed heavyweight champion and first undisputed champion in the division in 25 years.
Fury would have pulled out a draw had it not been for a disastrous ninth round in which Usyk knocked him down and nearly stopped him.
So, perhaps his big personality being in reserve is a sign of hyper focus on turning the tables and regaining the title when he and Usyk meet again in the main event of a Riyadh Season card on Saturday (DAZN PPV, 11 a.m. ET, $39.95 in U.S., £24.99 in U.K., $19.99 or its local currency equivalent elsewhere) at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, the same venue as their epic first fight.
Fury let his usual self show through briefly at the grand arrivals on Tuesday but at the media workout on Wednesday, he said little and didn’t throw a punch. Instead, he simply bounced up and down in the ring for about a minute before stopping, clearly in no mood to even go through the motions at what has become a tired fight week tradition.
I am in my 25th year of full-time boxing coverage. Take advantage of that experience by upgrading to a paid subscription to read the rest of this post and for full access to all posts and comments — and also support independent journalism.