Oleksandr Usyk vs. Tyson Fury 2 Predictions Roundtable: Will Fury Get His Revenge?

Oleksandr Usyk made history in his first match with Tyson Fury. Now he just has to do it again.

No fighter had ever given Fury a loss before (sorry, Francis Ngannou), but that’s exactly what Usyk did last May when he went 12 thrilling rounds with Fury, nearly finishing him in the ninth before eventually winning a decision in the eyes of two of the three judges. Just like that, Usyk – already the undisputed cruiserweight champion – was now boxing’s undisputed heavyweight king.

A rematch was booked almost immediately, and we’re now less than a day away from seeing two of the best fighters in the world square off. Will Usyk close the door on this rivalry for good, or will Fury seize his chance for revenge (and likely set up a trilogy fight)?

MMA Fighting’s Mike Heck, Damon Marin and Alexander K. Lee put on their prognosticating glasses and pick who will leave Saudi Arabia with the heavyweight crown.

Damn it: I think we’re going on a trip to Trilogy Town, gentlemen!

The first fight between Usyk and Fury was an absolute classic. Both men looked good for moments in the fight, but Fury learned a valuable lesson he’ll likely never forget – don’t mess with a guy like Usyk, because he’ll make you pay. Skill-wise, Fury has all the intangibles to win this fight – but between the ears is where the difference will be made.

While most people haven’t loved the short-tempered temper of Fury this week, I absolutely do. I thought the rejection of the open workout was huge, the post-“workout” interview was absolutely hilarious, and the fact that John Fury – who has a knack for taking the focus of his kids’ fights and putting it on himself – not wanting to be in Fury’s corner is smart decision making across the board.

Fury understands what is at stake here. He’s fighting an elite boxer, an undisputed two-division champion and a guy who hurt him badly in their first meeting in May. Fury was able to find a lot of success in his loss against Usyk, and I think he was the formula, along with the established size and reach advantage, plus, having a small crew in his corner telling him , what he needs to hear will be huge. In another spectacular affair, give me “The Gypsy King” for even the series.

Pick: Fury via decision

Photo by Richard Pelham/Getty Images

Martin: If the referee didn’t make a colossal mistake in the first fight, Usyk would go into this rematch against Tyson Fury with a knockout win on his record. Usyk had Fury reeling and reeling late in the fight, and the referee inexplicably decided to give The Gypsy King a standing figure eight instead of just waving the fight off. While Fury managed to find success in other rounds, Usyk’s ability to get within his range and hurt him repeatedly throughout the fight made the difference.

I don’t expect the rematch to go much differently.

Usyk is the better boxer and has been consistently great over the last few years. His speed, movement and volume punches have given plenty of bigger opponents trouble, and it’s hard to imagine Fury could change so much over the last six months to negate those advantages. While Fury had much more success in his rematches with Deontay Wilder, Usyk is a vastly superior fighter to the knockout artist from the United States.

The only thing that could get Usyk in trouble is going for the kill when Fury isn’t quite dead yet, and that could potentially backfire. Outside of the remote possibility, Usyk could win in even more lopsided fashion this time and actually get the chance to deliver a knockout as long as the referee doesn’t find a way to screw it up again.

The biggest issue facing Usyk is what happens after this fight, because he’s already run roughshod over almost every other viable contender in the division (some of them twice. Hey, Anthony Joshua!) But it’s a question to be answered another day.

Selection: Unsick via knockout in round 9

Photo by Richard Pelham/Getty Images

Lee: Rewatching the first fight, it’s clear that Fury has a lot of work to do to close the gap between him and Usyk. When Usyk advanced, Fury had little to offer in the way of counters, his jabs scored but did little to stifle Usyk’s aggression, and even his reliable clinch game was not present enough to impact the fight. All Fury had was volume and that didn’t matter much with Usyk closing the distance and scoring consistently inside.

Fury’s uppercut will be key in the rematch because if he can suss out Usyk’s timing, there are huge opportunities for him to hurt Usyk and throw off his rhythm, something he failed to do in May. When Fury released his hands, he was successful, although he also found himself in danger, because Usyk is as accurate as they come, even when it looks like the action is breaking down in a fight. Let’s see how well Fury does if he can set his jab to control the distance and his uppercut to fight fire with fire when Usyk gets in his face.

Usyk is actually at a slight disadvantage because not only did he win the first fight, he came as close as anyone to putting Fury away within the distance. He can’t be overzealous just because he feels like writing the referee wrong, so how he approaches a potential finish is as important as how he gets to that point. Fury will have plenty of respect for Usyk’s striking this time around, if he didn’t already.

I scored the first fight for Usyk by a narrow margin, 114-113, and while we could see another close fight, I’m actually leaning toward a refocused Fury delivering on his promise to hurt Usyk. No referees needed this time, it’s Fury inside the distance.

Pick: Fury via knockout in round 10