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MMA Fighting has Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk live round-by-round updates for one of the most anticipated boxing fights of the year on Saturday night at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

The main event is expected to begin around 5 p.m. ET on DAZN and PPV.com pay-per-view. Check out our Fury vs. Usyk results page to find out what happened on the undercard.

Fury (34-0-1) is one of the most decorated heavyweight champions in recent history, but had an underwhelming performance against lineal UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou when the two fought each other this past October. Fury eked out a split decision victory over the boxing debutant, despite getting dropped in the third round. Now he faces a considerably more experienced opponent in Usyk.

Usyk (21-0) is the 2012 Olympic gold medalist in boxing. He turned professional in 2013 and has been dominant since, becoming the first (and thus far only) undisputed cruiserweight champion in the four-belt era. Usyk then moved up to heavyweight, where he twice defeated Anthony Joshua to claim his current titles. Most recently, Usyk defended his belts with a ninth-round knockout of Daniel Dubois this past August.

Get the Fury vs. Usyk round-by-round live blog below:

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Who is the best fighter at heavyweight? Depends on who you ask.

If we’re going by the books? Jon Jones is the best in the world. He’s the division’s top champ, which by definition puts him above everyone else. But when logic sets in, things get more confusing. Jones hasn’t fought in more than a year. Tom Aspinall, the interim champ at heavyweight, earned his title last year and is already on track to defend in just a couple of months. Does that make him the best?

The issue with this “best” question is a simple way to describe the issues at heavyweight currently. Due to delays in fights and a promoter who hasn’t stepped in to end a reign, heavyweight has found itself in a usual position with two champions who have gotten comfortable sharing the throne.

A slow-moving division isn’t new for heavyweights in the UFC. With the undisputed title being put on the line on average less than once a year since 2019, it’s been a weight class dragging its feet title fight-wise for a while. But the current two-title dilemma that it finds itself in lasts much longer than many delays we have seen recently. It’s an issue with no clear end in sight, and with unavoidably bad optics.

How the UFC Heavyweight mess Got Here

When Jones captured the UFC heavyweight championship in early 2023, an optimist might have thought that the class would finally receive a consistent champion. After UFC iced out Francis Ngannou for a year, making his run with the belt uneventful, the division could have used a more workhorse fighter on top.

Sure, Jones had no shortage of controversies while reigning over the light heavyweight division, but he was a face that defined an era and cleaned out a roster. Maybe he could have done that for heavyweight. And for a moment, it looked like he could be an active fighter: Eight months after winning his title with a first-round finish of Ciryl Gane, Jones was expected to face former champ Stipe Miocic at Madison Square Garden.

The fight would have been a passing of the torch. Miocic is 41 and hasn’t fought in more than three years, but is remembered for the three title defences that made him a more successful heavyweight champ than any other in UFC history. A victory for Jones would further cement that it was officially his era, and shut down any complaints that Miocic was deserving of a title opportunity after Francis Ngannou ended his second title run with a scary knockout in 2021.

But a torn pec put a massive road bump in Jones’ title reign and took him out of the fight. The injury not only prevented the champ from fighting in New York, but also meant that he would be benched for a significant period of time, cutting into a serious chunk of 2024 as well.

With Jones on the bench, UFC tried to keep the division moving. No, they didn’t strip the champion who was set to go more than a year without defending his belt, they introduced an interim title. England’s Aspinall earned the gold with a swift finish against Sergei Pavlovich.

An interim is, by definition, a placeholder. As the Cambridge Dictionary defines it: “temporary and intended to be used or accepted until something permanent exists.” However, this title soon became more regular than, well, the regular title.

It was announced this week that Aspinall will defend his belt at UFC 304 against Curtis Blaydes. A fine matchup, but one that keeps the division in a puzzling position. The person who is supposed to be the true champion sits on the sidelines, while the man with a supposed temporary belt goes out and faces legitimate contenders.

At least once the fight between Blaydes and Aspinall is done with, we can finally unify the titles and have a singular true best fighter in the class, right? Well, if you ask Dana White, no. He’s still hoping to make the bout between Jones and Miocic, and Jones is hinting that his next appearance will be around November. This means we could see an interim title exist for more than a year before even getting to discussions about unification. That is not ideal.

What Can Be Done?

This is an ugly mess. With all of the obligations and complications, UFC’s heavyweight division has become a disorganized room that needs a full makeover. From an inactive champ to owing a fight to someone who isn’t even involved in the current title picture, to a pair of belts that need to be unified sometime before things start to look absurd, the promotion has a complicated puzzle to solve.

There’s a world where UFC can fix all of these problems by simply handling them when the right opportunity comes. But the truth is, that would likely take a long time. It’s hard to imagine a reality where a year from now we will have an undisputed heavyweight champion that has faced Miocic and unified the titles through a fight. And even with that generous estimation, that’s still a year and a half of an interim champion, which feels bizarre.

Realistically, it doesn’t make sense for Jones to be the champion at the moment. If someone asks who is the best active heavyweight in the world, it feels dishonest to say it is Jones. Why? He’s simply not active. It’s no knock on his fighting abilities or accomplishments to say that he isn’t fighting at the moment, which should realistically take him out of the equation so the class can keep moving.

Would stripping Jones of his title due to injury kill his momentum? Absolutely not. When he would return and inevitably get another title fight, the crowd that had come out to support him in the past would show up once again.

He was stripped for wrongdoing in three different instances during his light heavyweight title years and remained a star nonetheless. Why would freeing up a title for injury—instead of an issue where he can take the blame—hurt him? Jones is absolutely deserving of a title shot and should receive an opportunity once he is ready to fully return, whether it be in November or on a later date. But there’s no reason for him to sit with the belt when he can’t contribute anything to the division.

It feels tough to decide what’s right for Miocic. While on paper it’s hard incredibly to justify him getting a title fight since he hasn’t fought in years, is 41 and coming off a nasty knockout defeat, it also feels like he has been a victim of circumstance. He should have received a shot at the title way sooner, instead of just quietly waiting for all of this time.

After the UFC kept him waiting for too long, it feels easy to consider him a contender who isn’t worthy. Miocic was likely guaranteed a shot after the end of his title reign and has been waiting for ages for it. Because of that, it would be somewhat cruel if UFC changed course now.

If UFC really owes Miocic a title shot, they should get it over with quickly. UFC probably wants to make a fight between Jones and Miocic specifically because its two guys from a specific era and it can be marketed as a super-fight. But hat fight is becoming not only less realistic but less attractive as each day passes by. In a perfect world, Miocic would return in a non-title fight first to show the type of shape he’s in, which it seems like many are questioning. If that can be done, great, do it.

What Will Actually Happen, If Anything?

With those changes, you have a weight class full of active fighters who are keeping the title picture moving. Of course, these are combative changes that won’t please everyone. It’s easy for a columnist to say: “Okay and take this from that guy, and tell the other guy he shouldn’t get the title fight.” It’s another thing to actually make those moves and then deal with the potential blowback from them.

UFC has two options in front of them. They could let their heavyweight class figure itself out over the next year and some change, keeping the division’s title picture awkward and confusing to outsiders for the entire time. Or they could put in some calls and make some changes that could immediately put the division back into shape, although not without some scrutiny from corners of their fanbase and fighters. They could let their division continue to make little sense for a long time, or take control and show that holding the top title in a weight class means something. There’s certainly less shame in one of these options.

LowKickMMA.com

Former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson and influencer-turned-boxer Jake Paul are set to fight in a professional boxing match on July 20 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.  The event will air on Netflix for free and will likely set viewership records.  

Boxing Hall of Famer and former coach of Mike Tyson, Teddy Atlas, gave his thoughts on the matchup while in Saudi Arabia for the the Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk undisputed heavyweight showdown.  

“What do I make of it?  Let’s see, let me think for a minute.  You don’t have to be a genius to figure this one out, that he’s (Tyson) getting paid a lot of money,” Atlas told Boxing King Media. “We don’t know what’s real yet until we find out.”

“I don’t know if it’s real.  I know that Jake Paul has worked very hard to learn boxing and has been very smart about doing it.  He’s very smart; you have to give him credit,” Atlas continued.  “And I know, even at 58, or whatever age it is now, I know that the one thing that doesn’t go away from a fighter – I know it better than anyone because a man, a very special man named George Foreman at 45-years of age beat my fighter – because the one thing that doesn’t disappear is power.  

“Reflexes, they go away.  Speed, it disintegrates a little bit and deteriorates a little bit.  But Power, no, it stays.  Tyson still has power.  He still, you can see he’s still got quickness.  He’s got those quick-twitch muscles where he’s still got muscle memory.  He was one of the great heavyweights,” Atlas said.  “I would say this, if it’s real, the first couple of rounds are going to be very dangerous for Jake Paul.  The first couple of round with Tyson, the way that he would come out and do wha the normally does which is make you miss and create an opening.  He still has the power to do real, serious damage.”    

Paul is coming off a first-round knockout win over Ryan Bourland in his last outing.  He’s 9-1 in his professional boxing career, but hasn’t faced anyone that has the resume of “Iron Mike.”  Tyson last fought in November 2020.  He faced Roy Jones Jr. in an exhibition bout. The fight went the distance and was ruled a draw. 

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MMA Fighting has Fury vs. Uysk results live for the Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk fight card at the Freedom Arena on Saturday night in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

When the main event begins around 5 p.m. ET, check out our Fury vs. Uysk live round-by-round updates for our live blog of the main event. Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk will compete to be the undisputed heavyweight boxing champion.

Get Fury vs. Usyk results below.

Main Card (DAZN and PPV.com at 12 p.m. ET)

Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk — For the IBF, WBA, WBC and WBO heavyweight titles

Jai Opetaia vs. Mairis Briedis — For the vacant IBF cruiserweight title

Joe Cordina vs. Anthony Cacace — For the Cordina’s IBF super featherweight title

Frank Sanchez vs. Agit Kabayel — WBC heavyweight championship eliminator

Moses Itauma vs. Ilija Mezencev — For the vacant WBO Intercontinental heavyweight title

Mark Chamberlain vs. Joshua Wahab — For the WBC silver lightweight title

Sergey Kovalev vs. Robin Sirawn Safar — Light heavyweight

David Nyika vs. Michael Seitz — Cruiserweight

Prelims (MMA Fighting at 10 a.m. ET)

Daniel Lapin vs. Octavio Pudivitr — For the vacant Intercontinental light heavyweight title

Isaac Lowe vs. Hasibullah Ahmadi — Featherweight

Check out the Fury vs. Usyk undercard live blog below:

Mark Chamberlain vs. Joshua Wahab

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Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk are hours away from fighting for all the heavyweight marbles.

For years, Fury has been the default answer to the question of “Who is the baddest man on the planet?” but right now, it’s Usyk carrying the lion’s share of the gold. After Saturday, there will be no doubt as to who is the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world.

So who gets the job done in Saudi Arabia? Will it be the “Gypsy King” coming off of a narrow win over MMA star Francis Ngannou that made Fury look mortal, or will Usyk snuff out another British star?

MMA Fighting’s Jed Meshew, Alexander K. Lee, and Shaun Al-Shatti gather at the roundtable to figure out who leaves the weekend as heavyweight’s king of the ring.

Photo by Andrzej Iwanczuk/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Meshew: This fight rocks. Seriously, I’ve changed my mind a half-dozen times about it already since it was first announced and I’m not even sure I’ll still feel this way come fight time. But at this moment, I’m going with Usyk.

I understand all the reasons why Fury can win. Up until Wednesday, I even agreed with most of them, but after going back and re-watching both of their past few fights for the 12th time, two things have crystalized for me.

First, Usyk is just so good at winning fights. I’m not talking about his skills, I’m talking about his ability to win. The man is arguably the greatest cruiserweight ever, and if he’s not, he’s No. 2, so you know he has a plethora of skills. What impresses me the most is how he always has another gear to elevate to when he needs it. Go back and watch the Anthony Joshua fights. When A.J. starts to build momentum in the middle rounds, Usyk comes back the next round and takes it all back. It’s the mark of a true, world-class champion, and Usyk has it in spades.

Second, I cannot get the Francis Ngannou fight out of my head. Yes, Fury pretty clearly did not take Ngannou seriously, and yes, he is in spectacular shape heading into this fight, but still. Ngannou is not good at boxing. Anthony Joshua proved that authoritatively and Fury damn near lost to him. That’s tough for me to move past.

Ultimately, I think we’re looking at a close fight either way. Both men have a habit of putting up close rounds and the way they match up stylistically makes me think this could very much be an “eye of the beholder” fight as far as judging goes. But I favor Usyk’s speed, footwork, and shot selection to narrowly edge this on the scorecards.

Lee: Fury took a lot of flack for looking past Ngannou and you know what? He deserved it. Because he did. Because this is the fight that he was looking ahead to. That doesn’t excuse his lackluster outing against the UFC’s lineal heavyweight champion, but it should give you some idea of what to expect Saturday.

Simply put, Fury is one of the best big-game fighters in the world when he’s locked in, and they don’t get much bigger than this. Fury’s recent dalliance with Ngannou and his inability to book a bout with Anthony Joshua have left just enough of a crack in the door for the Usyk truthers to rush in. There are plenty of hungry Usyk supporters out there who have been waiting for their man to get the chance to silence The Gypsy King, and you can bet Fury has heard all the chatter. If Usyk hopes to see the best version of Fury, he’ll get it and then some.

Size matters, and Usyk is going to have to deal with some draining clinch work in the early rounds. That strategy assumes Fury can effectively cut off Usyk’s angles, which is no easy feat, but one that Fury will patiently implement even as the crowd begins to stir from the lack of meaningful action. It’s in the latter stages of the fight that Fury will show his true mastery as the ever-so-slightly-slowed Usyk begins to find it more and more difficult to avoid Fury’s power punches.

Usyk has proven he can take a punch and that durability will serve him well here, but Fury’s inimitable combination of impact and volume will break down his defenses. While Usyk searches for openings for combinations, Fury will bear down on him with all of his might and continually push him to the ropes.

It’s going to be a humdinger of a fight, one that Fury wins by TKO in the 10th.

Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images

Al-Shatti: This is such a magnificent fight. I know that’s cliche to say, but truly, it’s worth stopping for a moment to savor history sometimes when we’re on the precipice of witnessing greatness. Like Jed, I too have wavered to-and-fro for much of the past few years about this result. If you asked me in May 2022 or even May 2023 to call my shot, I would’ve confidently told you this is Fury’s bout to lose, if only for all of the usual refrains.

Standing a towering 6-foot-9, the English big man is simply an anomaly of heavyweight history. His physicality is too often overwhelming, particularly for heavies who trend toward the smaller side. At his best, he’s smothering — an outlandish mix of slop and style, tub and technique, with the ringcraft to fully apply his God-given gifts. With five inches of height, seven inches of reach, and 40 pounds of weight on Usyk, Fury will undoubtedly try his damnedest to suck the life out of the cruiserweight legend, to make Usyk feel every ounce, every inch, every smattering of that discrepancy in each exchange, especially early, then allow his lancing offense and impressive footwork for a man his size to carry the day.

It’s a simple strategy, one that has propelled Fury to the foot of the heavyweight pantheon; however, Usyk is an entirely different beast from the Derek Chisoras and Dillian Whytes of the world. That is what scares me most with this call. Perhaps if this were 2022 or 2023, the Ukrainian southpaw may not yet have had time to acclimate his body and style enough to the rigors a physical force like Fury presents, but we’ve waited long enough that Usyk’s wizardry has now been honed and perfected against this era of super-heavyweights. There’s a very real world where Usyk is simply too skilled for Fury, too dynamic, too many steps ahead of the game once Saturday’s chess match settles into its eventual rhythm.

Still, the one point I keep finding myself returning to? I think there’s a good chance what we watched from Fury this past October threw the whole world off his scent. The man showed up to Saudi Arabia looking like a Ziploc bag stuffed with mashed potatoes and clearly didn’t view Francis Ngannou with an ounce of seriousness, only to realize too late that a game plan engineered around working in the clinch and leaning on a fellow behemoth (and the No. 1 MMA heavyweight in the world) probably isn’t the best idea. Fury was lucky to escape with a robbery decision, but he’s clearly internalized that night and applied its lessons with the slimmed-down shape he’s parading around the desert this past week.

Usyk may be an in-ring warlock, but styles make fights, and Fury is the younger, larger, longer, more dangerous man. One side needs to have a perfect night and the other doesn’t, and ultimately I think that swings this narrowly back in Fury’s favor. Tyson Fury via split decision.

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The two men competing in this weekend’s undisputed heavyweight boxing match officially weighed in on Friday in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk will decide who the beat heavyweight boxer in the world is when they clash inside the ring.  Usyk weighed in first, tipping the scale at 233.5 pounds.  Fury stepped on the scale second and officially weighed 262 pounds.  

Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk Weigh-In Video

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Tyson Fury is on the cusp of capturing all four major heavyweight titles in a matchup with Oleksandr Usyk tomorrow afternoon (Sat., May 18, 2024) live on DAZN PPV in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, but all “Gypsy King” has on his mind is pure violence.

Fury, who has never tasted defeated in his 35-fight professional career, is a small betting favorite for Saturday’s heavyweight superfight. The towering Englishman may have been a heavier favorite in year’s past, but he’s coming off a close decision win over former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou his last time out. Fury was knocked down and nearly upset in that fight so oddsmakers are being cautious for his matchup with Usyk.

On Friday, the two heavyweights finally stepped on the scale for official weigh ins and one final staredown. After making weight, Fury and Usyk came together face-to-face before Fury shoved the Ukrainian champion and forced security to break things up. It was a completely different scene compared to Thursday’s pre-fight press conference when Fury refused to look Usyk in the eyes.

After Saturday’s weigh-in, Fury took to the microphone to deliver one last message to Usyk and his team. Fury is not one to mince words and always says what’s on his mind, but his final words to the heavyweight champion were downright terrifying. Check it out below:

“I’m going to knock this little f—ker spark out,” said Fury. “I’m coming for his heart, f—k his belts. I’m coming for his f—king heart. F—k him.”

Usyk, who is always cool, calm, and collected with his trash talk, had a simple message in response to Fury’s on-stage outburst.

“Let your hands talk in the ring,” said Usyk following Friday’s official weigh ins.

For the complete “Fury vs. Usyk” fight card and DAZN PPV lineup click here. For more boxing news and notes click here.

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