Oleksandr Usyk appears to be well aware he is in the driving seat with regards to his December 21st rematch with Tyson Fury.
Despite holding three of the four world titles that were up for grabs first time around, Usyk was very much the ‘B’ side commercially and reportedly earned significantly less than Fury.
Before the involvement of Turki Alalshikh and Saudi Arabia, the Ukrainian was seemingly bending over backwards to try and force a showdown with ‘The Gypsy King’, even accepting a mere 30% of the purse.
However, the 37-year-old is now very much the man in charge of the heavyweight division – and has the contractual guarantees to back it up.
In a recent interview with Ready To Fight, Usyk claims Fury will “lose all his money” if he fails to show up on December 21.
“𝗛𝗲’𝗹𝗹 𝗡𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗥 𝗯𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗨𝘀𝘆𝗸” ❌@ClonesCyclone is giving @Tyson_Fury NO chance in his December 21st rematch with Oleksandr Usyk 😬https://t.co/5SiCTjBcyf#Boxing #BarryMcGuigan #TysonFury #UsykFury2
— Pro Boxing Fans (@ProBoxingFans) August 11, 2024
“No way, because the ball’s in our court now. He has a contract and so do I until Dec 31st, we have to hold this fight up to and including [that date].
“If he pulls out Dec 21st, he will lose all of his money and dividends and won’t be a man of his word anymore.”
And as per usual, the unified world champion was in a playful mood when asked if he had any surprises for his old foe ahead of their second meeting.
“We are preparing candies, cakes and so much for our friend. We will treat him to delicious hugs.”
Fury will be all too aware that he must prepare for a great deal more than hugs and cakes if he is to get his revenge this Christmas.
As many pundits predicted, Usyk gave the Brit the toughest night of his professional career to date when they met earlier this year, badly hurting and dropping him on route to a points victory.
Though the judges returned a split decision, virtually all pundits were in agreement that the Simferopol native was a deserved winner on the night.
