The highly anticipated undisputed heavyweight championship clash between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk in Saudi Arabia has been postponed due to Fury suffering a cut during sparring, according to a statement from promoters Queensberry Promotions
The ‘Ring of Fire’ bout, originally scheduled for February 17 in Riyadh, aimed to unify Fury’s WBC heavyweight title with Usyk’s WBA, IBF, WBO, and IBO belts, potentially crowning the first unified heavyweight champion since 1999.
Fury, expressing devastation, stated, “I feel bad for everyone involved,” while Usyk’s camp expressed scepticism about the news, with manager Egis Klimas suggesting Fury might have been “hit by a frying pan, which he asked for.”
Flights and accommodations had already been arranged for many attendees coming from abroad. Queensberry Promotions shared an image of a cut above Fury’s right eye that required “significant stitching.”
Fury, 35, won the WBC title in February 2020 by defeating Deontay Wilder, while 37-year-old Usyk secured his belts by outscoring Anthony Joshua in September 2021. Both fighters remain undefeated in their professional careers.
The exact period of recovery needed for Fury’s eye will be determined by doctors. Fury will now face Ukraine’s Oleksandr Usyk on May 18 in a heavyweight title unification fight.
Queensberry Promotions suggested that the cut occurred during sparring with a Croatian heavyweight whose elbow accidentally struck Fury over the eye. Despite the setback, promoters remain committed to making the fight happen.