Midnight Mania! Battered Fury Forced To Postpone Usyk Until February

Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images

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Tyson Fury wanted a tune-up fight. “The Gypsy King” likes to take on s…


Boxing In Riyadh: Tyson Fury v Francis Ngannou
Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images

Bringing you the weird and wild from the world of MMA each and every weeknight!

Welcome to Midnight Mania!

Tyson Fury wanted a tune-up fight. “The Gypsy King” likes to take on some less-than-serious contenders between actually fighting the best in the world. When Francis Ngannou entered free agency and the boxing scene, Fury saw an opportunity to book a tune-up fight and score a massive paycheck in the process.

What could go wrong?

Nobody told Ngannou was there to help Fury shake off some rust. “The Predator” dropped Fury in the third round, wailed on him on several other occasions, and generally left him bruised and bloodied. It was a difficult, challenging fight for the lineal Heavyweight champion of the world, and he’s going to need some time to heal.

Consequently, his planned super fight versus Oleksandr Usyk isn’t happening on December 23. It’ll still go down in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, but the two are now planning to clash sometime in February according to ESPN’s Mike Coppinger.

Usyk is going to be pissed!

In defense of “The Gypsy King,” he openly didn’t want the Dec. 23 date booked or announced prior to the Ngannou fight. He explained that the announcement was out of his hands, and that the promoters had the power in making that call. Now, those same promoters have moved the date backward a couple months.

In truth, it may be in Fury’s best interest. He didn’t look well-conditioned against Ngannou, nor did he appear ready for Ngannou’s Southpaw tactics. Now, Usyk is a vastly different boxer than “The Predator,” and Fury likely was planning to come in sharper anyway, but perhaps its best that he has an extra eight-to-ten weeks to prepare.

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