Age could ultimately decide the Fury vs Usyk rematch

All the talking finally stopped, and nobody will ever forget round nine of the first fight between Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury in Riyadh back in May.

- STEVE BUNCE

Fury was hit from corner to corner, reeling, out on his feet, wide-eyed but defiant, and Usyk chased him like an animal pursuing wounded prey. It was a minute of total boxing madness; Fury survived the round and was still standing at the end of the 12th. Usyk got the verdict, Usyk became the first undisputed world heavyweight champion for 25 years and on Saturday, back in Riyadh, Usyk will enter the ring as the king. And being king is never easy in the boxing business.

Usyk and Fury have both promised a new and improved version for their rematch; they have each talked about adjustments once the first bell sounds at the Kingdom Arena in the latest of the Riyadh Season of fights. Fury has talked about being more serious and Usyk has talked about doing more of the same, just doing it better. They probably both worked out a way to win during the first fight, which was a slender split decision in the end. Usyk won the fight in the ninth when he hurt and nearly dropped Fury; the referee gave Fury a count because the ropes had kept him upright, and that extra point was the slender difference between winning and losing.