Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury look set for a mammoth heavyweight fight to crown the king of a division that hasn’t has just one since Lennox Lewis reigned.
Fury had to beat Derek Chisora to free his path towards the bout, which he did convincingly. The Ukrainian, on the other hand, has been biding his time out of the ring, recovering from his second fight with Anthony Joshua that allowed him out of contractual obligations and into the heavyweight ether to rightfully pursue his next opponent.
Both fighters are now onboard to clash for all the titles. As negotiations are ramped up behind the scenes, Usyk has shared a selfie from the face off seen around the world. His caption appears to say ‘how are you, belly’ – although there has been some confusion about the specific translation.
Oleksandr Usyk has now posted the selfie he took with Tyson Fury after facing off with him on Saturday night. He captioned it: "Belly button what's up?" pic.twitter.com/yyAtgSMvnR
— Michael Benson (@MichaelBensonn) December 8, 2022
The former cruiserweight champion was totally unfazed as he stood in front of Fury – and 60,000 English fans – to face off for the first time. So much so that he managed both a selfie and a phone call during.
The contest is likely the most skilful on offer in a division that’s more often than not known for big punches rather than slick movements. Can Fury deal with Usyk’s speed and ring craft? Might Usyk struggle with Fury’s size and strength?
The questions may be answered as early as March 4 next year, with ‘The Gypsy King’s US promoter, Bob Arum, recently telling Fight Hub TV that things could be made official as early as next week.
“I think both fighters want the fight, and that’s a step in the right direction. We’re not fielding offers from around the world, and hopefully, by next week, we’ll be able to have an announcement.”