Next week’s rematch between Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury is one of the most significant heavyweight match-ups in recent memory.
Fury will attempt to score revenge over Usyk at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, the same venue at which he suffered his sole career defeat at the hands of the masterful Ukrainian back in May.
If ‘The Gypsy King’ is to emerge victorious, many observers believe a long overdue domestic clash with Anthony Joshua is a cast iron certainty to take place in 2025.
However, DAZN’s Ade Oladipo has weighed in with his two cents – and he sees things slightly differently.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Oladipo admitted he actually thinks BOTH men will retire after their crunch rematch in Saudi Arabia.
“What happens after the fight? Where do both go?
“The more I think about it, I do think that we won’t see both in the ring again after December 21st.
“I know that might sound crazy because we’ve heard a lot about Klitschko returning, AJ vs Fury – there’s hundreds of millions of pounds out there, I get that.
“But I just feel like both of them will retire, I really do. Maybe not announce retirement, but I just don’t think we’ll see them again.
“Sometimes you’ve just got to look at what is out there for both.”
“𝗨𝗦𝗬𝗞 𝗛𝗔𝗦 𝗚𝗢𝗧 𝗛𝗜𝗦 𝗡𝗨𝗠𝗕𝗘𝗥” 🤷♂️
🥊 Journalist Colin Hart questions whether @Tyson_Fury‘s first loss to @usykaa has affected him “psychologically” heading into next week’s rematch 🤔#UsykFury2 pic.twitter.com/bFdeh0amdC
— Pro Boxing Fans (@ProBoxingFans) December 11, 2024
Though their first meeting was for undisputed status, only three belts will be on the line this time, after Usyk was forced to vacate the IBF title, with Daniel Dubois becoming full champion.
There are big question marks over what approach Fury will adopt second time around, with some calling for him to come in slightly heavier and adopt a front foot approach, similar to the gameplan that saw him stop Deontay Wilder back in 2020.
Should Fury topple Usyk, he will become only the fourth man in history to become a three-time heavyweight world champion, alongside Muhammad Ali, Evander Holyfield and Lennox Lewis.
