Tyson Fury was handed his first career defeat against the awe-inspiring Oleksandr Usyk on May 18 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The pair went to battle over 12 rounds in an epic clash, with 'The Cat' securing a split-decision victory.
After dominating much of the first six rounds, Fury began getting caught with some powerful blows from Usyk that changed the momentum of the fight. The Ukrainian landed a massive overhand left in Round 9 that had his opponent wobbling all over the canvas, and the finish appeared in sight.
But with 10 seconds left in the round, the referee intervened and gave 'The Gypsy King' a standing 8-count, to the surprise of many. The official was criticized for both the speed of his count and his decision to intervene, with many believing that Usyk was denied a knockout victory.
Former opponent of the Brit, Deontay Wilder, recently shared his thoughts on the result of the fight and the controversial ninth round. His comments were posted to X by talkSPORT boxing editor Michael Benson, who wrote this:
Get the latest updates on One Championship Rankings at Sportskeeda and more
"Deontay Wilder on Oleksandr Usyk beating Tyson Fury: "I thought it was a great fight. I think Usyk was ropped of the knockout in the ninth round for sure. Gifts were given. But at the end of the day he won and big congratulations to him."
See Michael Benson's post below:
Tyson Fury vs. Anthony Joshua "definitely" happens in 2025, says Bob Arum
Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua are two of the biggest names in boxing's heavyweight division. However, as is the case with many of boxing's superstars, they have been unable to negotiate a deal to fight one another, likely for several reasons.
A fight between the pair has been dubbed the "biggest fight in boxing history" by Joshua's promoter, Eddie Hearn.
More recently, legendary promoter Bob Arum has claimed that a Fury vs. Joshua clash will almost certainly take place in 2025.
Arum recently appeared on talkSPORT, where he discussed the potential for an all-British boxing match, saying this:
"Next year, definitely. Win or lose, that fight is something that has to happen because there's so much talk about it in the UK. There's so many opinions about it. I would be very surprised if that fight didn't happen in Wembley by mid-2025."
Watch Arum discuss Tyson Fury vs. Anthony Joshua taking place below from 8:15: