It was an emotional night for Oleksandr Usyk.
Stepping inside the ring for a long-awaited unification clash with Tyson Fury, the Ukrainian superstar defied the odds and handed ‘The Gypsy King’ the first loss of his career, securing a split decision victory to become the undisputed unified heavyweight world champion.
Addressing members of the media following his 22nd career win, ‘The Cat’ was understandably emotional, particularly when talking about his father who died shortly after his Olympic victory in 2012.
An emotional Oleksandr Usyk talks about his late father in the post-fight interview after his win against Tyson Fury
"I love you… I know he's here."
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— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) May 19, 2024
“I miss my father… I said to my father, ‘Hey, listen. You live there, I live here. Please, no coming for me. I love you.’ I know he’s here,” an emotional Usyk said with the support of those in attendance.
Oleksandr Usyk’s promoter believes the referee saved Tyson Fury in round nine
After falling behind early, Oleksandr Usyk poured it on in the later rounds and even scored a knockdown in the ninth round after Fury used the ropes to keep himself upright following an onslaught of strikes from his opponent. Usyk’s promoter Alex Krassyuk suggested that the referee essentially screwed his fighter out of a knockout, saying:
“I believe the referee saved Tyson from a knockout and stole the ninth-round knockout, which should have happened,” Krassyuk said.
However, Usyk wasn’t overly concerned with the ruling, especially since he walked away with the biggest win of his career regardless.
“No knock-out, no problem,” Usyk added. “I don’t think about it because we had a win.”
With a rematch clause built into their contract, we will likely see Usyk and Fury step back inside the squared circle later this year with rumors already swirling that the two will run it back in Riyadh this October.