Author: Dan Hiergesell

Tyson Fury touched the scale a whopping 55 pounds heavier than Oleksandr Usyk ahead of their rematch tomorrow afternoon (Sat., Dec. 21, 2024) LIVE on DAZN pay-per-view (PPV) from inside Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, but fight fans aren’t convinced a larger “Gypsy King” will get the job done.

Tomorrow’s rematch is undoubtedly the biggest fight in boxing this year. The first meeting between Fury and Usyk this past May was an incredible success so it was only a matter of time before the two superstars touched gloves again. It’s another opportunity for Fury to prove he’s the better heavyweight fighter and avenge the only loss on his professional record (Usyk won their first meeting via split decision).

Ahead of his second fight with Usyk, “Gypsy King” has packed on some considerable weight. At Friday’s weigh ins (replay HERE), Tyson ended up tipping the scale at 281 pounds. That’s 19 pounds more than the 262 pounds Fury weighed for the first fight. Usyk, on the other hand, weighed in at 226 pounds, which is just two pounds heavier than what he was back in May.

In case you’re bad at math, Tyson will have a staggering 55-pound weight advantage over Usyk for tomorrow’s rematch in Riyadh. That’s pretty substantial, but boxing fans are not sold that Fury’s weight gain will lead to positive results against a quicker and precise puncher like Usyk.

Check out some of their reaction below and let us know your thoughts!

“Fury gonna humble Usyk.”

“Fury will get tired, obese mf.”

“Fury about to flatten Usyk.”

“This has a mix of benefits and disadvantages. Usyk is a good all-arounder. But Tyson will KO him.”

“He was already having trouble getting to Usyk last time, this isn’t gonna help imo.”

“The fury’s lost aura.”

“Watch Tyson lose again lol.”

“If fury loses with a 55 pound advantage, bro needs to retire IMMEDIATELY.”

“Losing to a guy who is 50 pounds lighter than you will be embarrassing.”

“Fury is going to try to do what he did to Wilder in rematch. Use his weight as an advantage. By fighting dirty in spots and dropping all his weight on Usyk in clinches. If Usyk gets it done again man. Dude is a top 15-10 ATG.”

“Potato on tooth picks.”

---

For more boxing news and notes click here.

One of the biggest boxing rematches of this generation will go down tomorrow afternoon (Sat., Dec. 21, 2024) LIVE on DAZN pay-per-view (PPV) from inside Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, as Oleksandr Usyk puts his heavyweight crown on the line against former undefeated champion Tyson Fury.

In case you forgot, Usyk and Fury collided inside the ring this past May in Saudi Arabia. Usyk ended up winning by split decision, but he busted up “Gypsy King” pretty bad and even had him on the ropes in the later frames (watch HERE). There was never any doubt that the two heavyweight superstars would run it back right away, but this rematch was originally expected to go down in October. It will now close out 2024 with a bang.

As expected, Usyk and Fury will both earn incredible paydays for their highly-anticipated rematch. According to a recent report by Marca, the overall payout for Saturday’s heavyweight main event will be $190 million. Usyk stands to make 55 percent of that total while Fury is expected to walk away with 45 percent. So that’s about $105 million for Usyk and $85 million for Fury.

This is vastly different from their first meeting earlier in 2024. That’s because Fury entered that fight as the undefeated WBC champion and the true A-side. “Gypsy King” walked away with roughly $100 million while Usyk scampered off with $45 million. It’s wild to see what 12 rounds can do for a fighter like Usyk who will now earn more than double for the rematch.

---

For more boxing news and notes click here.

Colby Covington nearly lost an eyelid last night (Sat., Dec. 14, 2024) at UFC Tampa LIVE on ESPN2/ESPN+ from inside Amalie Arena in Tampa, Fla., when “Chaos” was beat into a bloody mess by surging welterweight contender Joaquin Buckley en route to a third-round TKO stoppage (see it HERE).

Luckily, UFC Tampa offered more than just the welterweight main event. Check out some of the key moments below and let us know which performances stood out the most:

• Surging featherweight Sean Woodson extended his UFC unbeaten streak to seven with a buzzer-beating knockout finish over Fernando Padilla
• Joel Alvarez punched his ticket to a top 15 lightweight matchup with a wild flying knee knockout finish over veteran Drakkar Klose (watch HERE)
• Lightweight veteran Michael Johnson turned back the clock with a monstrous Knockout of the year Candidate against Ottman Azaitar

• Dustin Jacoby scored his biggest UFC win to date with a nasty third-round knockout stoppage over Brazilian powerhouse Vitor Petrino (highlights HERE)
• Flyweight contender Manel Kape called for his shot at UFC flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja after stopping Bruno Silva with a third-round body kick TKO
• UFC veteran Cub Swanson may have fought for the last time on Saturday night, but at least he walked away with a ridiculous one-punch walkoff knockout (see it HERE)

To sift through the action and see which fighters took home an extra $50,000, we take a closer look at the official UFC Tampa post-fight bonus winners below:

• Fight of the Night: Cub Swanson vs. Billy Quarantillo
• Performance of the Night: Michael Johnson
• Performance of the Night: Dustin Jacoby

---

For complete UFC Tampa results, coverage, and highlights, click HERE.

Joaquin Buckley may not have earned the decisive stoppage he wanted last night (Sat., Dec. 14, 2024) at UFC Tampa LIVE on ESPN2/ESPN+ from inside Amalie Arena in Tampa, Fla., but the welterweight contender still fought hard to defeat former title challenger Colby Covington in the final main event of the year.

Buckley had his way in the first round and really busted Covington up. A short right hand during an exchange inside formed a cut right below Covington’s right eyebrow. It caused some discomfort for the former title challenger and left him bloody after just a few minutes of action.

Luckily for Covington, he was able to utilize his wrestling in the second round to gain some valuable top time and keep the powerful Buckley off his feet. “Chaos” was able to score some clean shots as well once Buckley was able to get off his back. Covington’s luck would run out, though, as Buckley defended his takedowns in the third round and bloodied him pretty badly. The referee was worried about the cut above Covington’s eye, but was going to give him the rest of the round.

With just a handful of seconds left in the third round the referee paused the action and brough the doctor into the Octagon to take a closer look at “Chaos.” Covington’s face was painted red and the doctor could be heard saying, “He’s going to lose his eyelid.” The fight was waved off and Buckley walked away with his sixth-straight win at 170 pounds.

Check out the video highlights and some bloody photos below:

Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC

Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC

---

For complete UFC Tampa results, coverage, and highlights, click HERE.

UFC officials promised a memorable end-of-year walkout Saturday night (Dec. 14, 2024) at UFC Tampa LIVE on ESPN2/ESPN+ from inside Amalie Arena in Tampa, Fla., and it did not disappoint as Colby Covington was escorted to the Octagon by none other than Hulk Hogan. Covington was headlining the event in a five-round showdown with welterweight contender Joaquin Buckley.

Earlier this week, UFC commentator Brendan Fitzgerald teased a unique walkout for UFC Tampa’s main event and urged fight fans to catch every second of it. Some were left wondering if President-elect Donald Trump would make one more UFC event appearance and usher “Chaos” to the cage. It seemed unlikely, but nobody knew for sure what was going to happen during Covington’s final walkout of 2024.

“We always manage to top ourselves each year,” said Fitzgerald earlier this week. “For the first time in a while, I’m like ‘what are we going do in 2025 to outdo [UFC 300] and The Sphere?’ I don’t know. We’re going to try and I’m sure we’ll think of something …

“Don’t miss the Colby walkout. That’s all I’m going to say. It’s going to be a moment, going to be fun.”

To much surprise, Covington was joined by Hogan and even came out to Hogan’s legendary WWE theme song. Whether you like Covington or not, this was a pretty epic moment to close out the last show of the year. Covington has walked out to Kurt Angle’s “You Suck” theme song before, but coming to the Octagon with Hulk Hogan by his side is on an entirely new level.

Check out the epic walkout in the above video player and more footage below:

---

For complete UFC Tampa results, coverage, and highlights, click HERE.

If Cub Swanson’s final MMA fight was last night (Sat., Dec. 14, 2024) at UFC Tampa LIVE on ESPN2/ESPN+ from inside Amalie Arena in Tampa, Fla., then it was the perfect way to go out.

Swanson, who turned 41 this past November, has been competing under the UFC banner for 13 years. The veteran fighter was fighting for the love of the sport on Saturday night and to prove he still belongs inside of the Octagon. After last weekend’s duds by mainstay veterans Chris Weidman, Anthony Smith, and Clay Guida, Swanson was fighting an uphill battle at UFC Tampa.

Fortunately, Swanson’s 41-year-old chin held up against a high-volume fighter in Quarantillo. The two featherweights would exchange punches and kicks in bunches and had each other hurt at different times of the fight. Quarantillo appeared to have a little more gas left in the tank down the stretch, but Swanson just needed one shot to turn the momentum back in his favor.

That moment came just over one minute into the third round when Swanson made his move and launched a perfectly-timed right hand. It crashed into Quarantillo and instantly put him out. Quarantillo fell backwards onto the canvas and sprawled out. It was a tremendous finish by Swanson, who hinted at potential retirement during his post-fight speech.

Check out the video highlights below:

---

For complete UFC Tampa results, coverage, and highlights, click HERE.