[ POLL ] The Rematch: FURY vs USYK 21st December 2024

[South Park]

Is this even an option though? i.e. if the Saudis paid Hrgovic to say he doesn't want to fight anytime soon and is happy to wait for the outcome of the rematch, wouldn't the IBF be in power to force Usyk to defend the belt against whoever is ranked below Hrgovic? Just to prevent stalling etc.
I think hilariousetc meant a deal with IBF, not with the top contender himself.
So, if what hilariousetc wrote is true and Usyk cannot be stripped while being on medical suspension (until 2nd June), then the Hrgovic Vs Dubois (scheduled for the 1st of June) will definitely not have a freshly vacated IBF belt on the line. At the very best, it could be an interim belt. Correct?

Things are getting pretty confusing...

I really hope this can be solved in favor of Usyk, I know those rules are set in place so the champion cannot avoid the top contender for long, but Usyk is not avoiding anyone, he got all the belts of the heavyweight division in just 6 fights, and it should be obvious that the best for him, boxing fans and box in general is to allow him to keep all his titles for his rematch with Fury, after that the winner can just begin to fight against the mandatory challengers.

[pawel7777]

(...) as Usyk could still be wearing it until such time that he will have his rematch with Tyson Fury.(...)

Not necessarily. Only if the IBF grants him the exception his team asked for. Otherwise, he's "protected" only until 2nd June. After that, the IBF could demand him to fight the interim belt holder next. The whole idea of the interim championship is that the original champ has to face the interim champ after his return.

Also from what I read, the powerful broker, HE Turki Alalshikh spoke to Flip Hrgovic and could have a verbal agreement that the fight is going to be for the interim belt and maybe wait for the result of the Fury vs Usyk as he could be next in the line.

Have you got a link to that? All I can find is that Alalshikh has announced that the winner of Hrgovic Vs Dubois will face Anthony Joshua in September:
https://talksport.com/sport/1869699/anthony-joshua-next-fight-tyson-fury-dubois-hrgovic/

Which would indicate that either:
1 - no interim belt will be introduced and Usyk will be granted the exception and then the winner of Usyk Vs Fury 2 will face the winner of Hrgovic/Dubois Vs Joshua for the IBF title shot; or
2 - Usyk will be stripped and the winner of Hrgovis Vs Dubois will face Joshua for the IBF belt, and whoever wins then could maybe face the winner of Usyk Vs Fury 2.

That's how I read the situation anyway.

[cabron]

If this is a problem, then solving this problem (collecting all the belts) seems more valuable.

The financial aspect of any boxing bout as alluring as it could be probably will not be bigger than the desire of either Fury or Usyk to cement their place in history. To have had the unification fight was momentous (the first time it happened since Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield in 1999) and to have a rematch with all the belts on the line again would be the least fans should expect.

Things are getting pretty confusing...

At the moment yes things are confusing. Maybe things will clear when the next major news updates are released by the Fury, Usyk and the IBF.

Seem just technicalities will save Usyk's IBF belt and only an interim fight will happen. This is a good thing for him but what about after June 2?  Can't believe this is just a coincidence.  No one will question what the British Boxing Board of Control has to do over Usyk. This has to be boxing politics in action.

Dubois vs Hrgovic should be an interim fight otherwise there will be no reason for Usyk-Fury 2 right?  This means Usyk will be stripped of the IBF belt after the suspension date and this rematch will be for the IBF belt this Oct, right? Gotta give what the Saudis want.

[JollyGood]

Well, for one reason or another most boxing fans would like to see Fury and Usyk have the rematch with the same titles and championship belts as were on the line on 18th May when the unification fight happened. We all know Usyk is not avoiding anybody but the IBF is now getting free publicity as they are being mentioned in the media.

You are right about Usyk because with just six heavyweight fights at the age of 37 he became undisputed heavyweight champion and that is phenomenal. All that after he stepped up as undefeated undisputed cruiserweight champion too and his first professional boxing fight was at the very late age of 26 years old.

I really hope this can be solved in favor of Usyk, I know those rules are set in place so the champion cannot avoid the top contender for long, but Usyk is not avoiding anyone, he got all the belts of the heavyweight division in just 6 fights, and it should be obvious that the best for him, boxing fans and box in general is to allow him to keep all his titles for his rematch with Fury, after that the winner can just begin to fight against the mandatory challengers.

[KTChampions]

If this is a problem, then solving this problem (collecting all the belts) seems more valuable.

The financial aspect of any boxing bout as alluring as it could be probably will not be bigger than the desire of either Fury or Usyk to cement their place in history. To have had the unification fight was momentous (the first time it happened since Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield in 1999) and to have a rematch with all the belts on the line again would be the least fans should expect.
~

Yep, it's true. But this does not contradict my words in any way? My point of view is that having a bunch of (4 main at the moment) belts is a better state of affairs for boxing than if there was only one belt. I mean that it’s good that there are different versions of championship belts, and not just that some boxer has these belts.
The more belts, the more dynamics and the faster new faces can replace old ones.

[inthelongrun]

I hope the IBF will stick to their earlier statement and that is to strip Usyk of his belt unless he comes with an agreement which is most likely to pay Filip a step aside fee.

The IBF is known for many years as the most reliable among those major belts, enforcing strictly on their mandatories. They even stripped popular champions like Lennox Lewis. But the IBF changed when Daryl Peoples assumed leadership. Errol Spence and some fighters were given special treatments. So I won't be surprised if Hrgovic will be fighting for the useless interim belt instead of the real IBF belt even without receiving a step aside fee.

[Dave1]

I hope the IBF will stick to their earlier statement and that is to strip Usyk of his belt unless he comes with an agreement which is most likely to pay Filip a step aside fee.

The IBF is known for many years as the most reliable among those major belts, enforcing strictly on their mandatories. They even stripped popular champions like Lennox Lewis. But the IBF changed when Daryl Peoples assumed leadership. Errol Spence and some fighters were given special treatments. So I won't be surprised if Hrgovic will be fighting for the useless interim belt instead of the real IBF belt even without receiving a step aside fee.

As per this report, they have filed for a exception,

Oleksandr Usyk has taken a first step—and perhaps a last gasp—to keep his undisputed heavyweight championship reign intact.

The Ring has confirmed that the unbeaten two-division champ has filed an exception to avoid being stripped of the IBF title. The request to delay his overdue mandatory title defense comes six days after Usyk defeated Tyson Fury via split decision to fully unify all the heavyweight titles. Fury’s representatives confirmed plans to enforce a rematch clause.

https://www.ringtv.com/670559-oleksandr-usyk-files-for-exception-to-ibf-mandatory-defense-versus-filip-hrgovic/

The got all the belts in their first fight, hopefully the same can be said in the rematch and I do hope that IBF will not stripped Usyk of the belt. It's a good first step to show his intention to the IBF and it's obvious that he can't fulfill his obligation to fight their mandatory after his fight with Fury.

[JollyGood]

As far as the rematch is concerned, I will reset the poll because it will be interesting to see how forum members vote this time after Usyk was awarded a majority decision in the first fight. At this moment in time, I am absolutely convinced Fury will win the rematch if it goes ahead because he will be the hungrier of the two and he will try to step up in the way he did during his trilogy with Wilder. Obviously I could be proved wrong and not only that, maybe Usyk will step up and be even better (and maybe I will change my opinion as we get closer to the date).

Earlier today, Frank Warren stated both boxers want the rematch and a date/venue will be announced soon. I hope it does go ahead.

[Kemarit]

(...) as Usyk could still be wearing it until such time that he will have his rematch with Tyson Fury.(...)

Not necessarily. Only if the IBF grants him the exception his team asked for. Otherwise, he's "protected" only until 2nd June. After that, the IBF could demand him to fight the interim belt holder next. The whole idea of the interim championship is that the original champ has to face the interim champ after his return.

Also from what I read, the powerful broker, HE Turki Alalshikh spoke to Flip Hrgovic and could have a verbal agreement that the fight is going to be for the interim belt and maybe wait for the result of the Fury vs Usyk as he could be next in the line.

Have you got a link to that? All I can find is that Alalshikh has announced that the winner of Hrgovic Vs Dubois will face Anthony Joshua in September:
https://talksport.com/sport/1869699/anthony-joshua-next-fight-tyson-fury-dubois-hrgovic/

Which would indicate that either:
1 - no interim belt will be introduced and Usyk will be granted the exception and then the winner of Usyk Vs Fury 2 will face the winner of Hrgovic/Dubois Vs Joshua for the IBF title shot; or
2 - Usyk will be stripped and the winner of Hrgovis Vs Dubois will face Joshua for the IBF belt, and whoever wins then could maybe face the winner of Usyk Vs Fury 2.

That's how I read the situation anyway.

If my memory serves me right, it was from from Twitter though, I will try to look at again if I'm can. Hopefully, Usyk will be granted the exception by the IBF and not stripped of the belt. And it's more on the side of Fury though, as him and Usyk fought for all the major belts, so in the rematch it should be the same and granting Fury a change to win all 4 belts.

There are a lot of scenarios right now with that news of IBF stripping Usyk. But again, we can only wait, let's see what the IBF will decide and then we can all speculate as how the fight of Hrgovic vs Dubois will be treated.

[pawel7777]

I don't think the possibility of Usyk being stripped of the IBF belt would be any threat to the rematch with Fury. The rematch will happen regardless of the IBF's decision.
That's simply because the only way for Fury to save his face/legacy is to go out there and take his revenge on Usyk. What other option does he have? Refuse to fight because the number of belts is not quite the same as in their 1st fight? That would be nonsense.

As for the IBF belt, it's a bit weird that we're only a few days away from Hrgovic Vs Dubois and nobody seems to know whether it's going to be a fight for the belt, interim belt, or no belt at all.
I think we can rule out the belt, as Usyk is on medical suspension until 2nd June, unless the IBF really want to strip him (I don't believe they are) and will find some loophole to do it before the 1st.

[JollyGood]

The new date for the rematch has been officially released to take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: 21st December 2024

It seems commentators and speculators are confident Usyk will not be stripped of the IBF title because he is under medical suspension until 2nd June 2024 but Filip Hrgovic and Daniel Dubois take to the ring on 1st June 2024. It works in favour of both Fury and Usyk because all the belts are going on back the line for a winner-takes-them-all to be the undisputed heavyweight champion.

Here is the new updated record for both boxers:

[KTChampions]

The new date for the rematch has been officially released to take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: 21st December 2024

It seems commentators and speculators are confident Usyk will not be stripped of the IBF title because he is under medical suspension until 2nd June 2024 but Filip Hrgovic and Daniel Dubois take to the ring on 1st June 2024. It works in favour of both Fury and Usyk because all the belts are going on back the line for a winner-takes-them-all to be the undisputed heavyweight champion.

Here is the new updated record for both boxers:

It’s a pity that the loser has a chance for all the belts at once, it seems to me that this is not entirely fair, in my opinion, belts should be collected gradually and not taken away in a bunch (in this case, there may be too many undisputed champions if one loses to a second, a second to a third, etc. ).
It will be interesting to look at the quotes for the fight, the first fight was quoted as absolutely equal to 1.85 - 1.85.

[pawel7777]

The new date for the rematch has been officially released to take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: 21st December 2024

It seems commentators and speculators are confident Usyk will not be stripped of the IBF title because he is under medical suspension until 2nd June 2024 but Filip Hrgovic and Daniel Dubois take to the ring on 1st June 2024. It works in favour of both Fury and Usyk because all the belts are going on back the line for a winner-takes-them-all to be the undisputed heavyweight champion.

Thanks for the update.

Yeah, Usyk almost definitely will not be stripped before 2nd June, but that's not to say the IBF cannot do it after that date.
Given the rematch is scheduled 2 months later than initially indicated, any potential mandatory defense will not take place until around a year from now at the earliest. I find it hard to believe the IBF will grant the exception and postpone the defense for that long, as it would be unfair to the challengers. Plus, there's no guarantee the winner of the rematch will be interested in defending that belt at all.
I expect there will be no interim belt on the line on Saturday and Usyk to be stripped after the 2nd of June. Then the fight between Hrgovic/Dubois and Anthony Joshua would be for the proper belt (not the interim one).
I don't see much sense in introducing an interim belt given Usyk is not seriously injured and would be ready to fight if he wanted to.

[boltz]

Why again Saudi Arabia ? I think they are better places for a boxing game of this caliber to be held on like Europe per example ? Lately UFC and even WWE chose to have big events there at least 2-3 times per year because of the big amount of money they get from this events but Europe should have have this rematch between Fury and Usyk and even if I vote for Fury , I believe Usyk will have win back 2 back games against him.

[JollyGood]

It’s a pity that the loser has a chance for all the belts at once, it seems to me that this is not entirely fair, in my opinion, belts should be collected gradually and not taken away in a bunch (in this case, there may be too many undisputed champions if one loses to a second, a second to a third, etc. ).
It will be interesting to look at the quotes for the fight, the first fight was quoted as absolutely equal to 1.85 - 1.85.

If all the belts were available for the first fight and they had a two-fight clause, then I see no reason why all the belts should not be on the line for the rematch. There is still a chance any of the licencing bodies could come up with some reason to strip Usyk of any of his titles but that seems slim to zero after the IBF seems unlikely to strip Usyk of his belt.

I don't see much sense in introducing an interim belt given Usyk is not seriously injured and would be ready to fight if he wanted to.

There are far too many rumours circulating within heavyweight boxing circles at the moment. I cannot see any interim belt being produced, that is just a step too far for an unnecessary project. It probably will not be worth going through the hassle.

Why again Saudi Arabia ? I think they are better places for a boxing game of this caliber to be held on like Europe per example ? Lately UFC and even WWE chose to have big events there at least 2-3 times per year because of the big amount of money they get from this events but Europe should have have this rematch between Fury and Usyk and even if I vote for Fury , I believe Usyk will have win back 2 back games against him.

There is around £100 million to be shared between the parties therefore the fight had to take place in a country where there was money available. Many countries could have staged the event and handled the capacity but they would not have been able to bring £100 million to the table. The fact is the boxers and their managers were always going to follow the money and it led to Saudi Arabia, not many countries were ever going to be able to give to stump up those sorts of astronomical amounts of money.

[Kemarit]

Why again Saudi Arabia ? I think they are better places for a boxing game of this caliber to be held on like Europe per example ? Lately UFC and even WWE chose to have big events there at least 2-3 times per year because of the big amount of money they get from this events but Europe should have have this rematch between Fury and Usyk and even if I vote for Fury , I believe Usyk will have win back 2 back games against him.

Haven't you seen the Saudi has been posting a lot of big fights? Everyone is one board with His Excellency Turki Alalshikh as the powerful broker in boxing as he had most of the biggest fights in the last year or so held on that region.

Europe will also be good place to held this fight, unfortunately, there could not be enough money that can host the rematch more than Saudi itself. The budget, the money being generated is so huge that promoters, and obviously boxers can't refuse the offer of HE Alalshikh. His influence is so big right now.

[FinneysTrueVision]

If all the belts were available for the first fight and they had a two-fight clause, then I see no reason why all the belts should not be on the line for the rematch. There is still a chance any of the licencing bodies could come up with some reason to strip Usyk of any of his titles but that seems slim to zero after the IBF seems unlikely to strip Usyk of his belt.

The IBF just ordered Canelo to fight William Scull, a completely unknown and undeserving fighter who somehow managed to become mandatory. Canelo decided to vacate the belt. The IBF is very strict with their rules even when it will have an unproductive result that ends up fragmenting the belts so that an inferior fighter can have the opportunity to become champion.

Hrgovic has been mandatory for years already. At this point, the only way they will make an exception is if the Saudis can bribe Hrgovic and his promoter with enough money to agree to step aside. Considering the magnitude of the Fury vs. Usyk rivalry, it might just be more lucrative to keep stepping aside.

[hilariousetc]

I hope the IBF will stick to their earlier statement and that is to strip Usyk of his belt unless he comes with an agreement which is most likely to pay Filip a step aside fee.

The IBF is known for many years as the most reliable among those major belts, enforcing strictly on their mandatories. They even stripped popular champions like Lennox Lewis. But the IBF changed when Daryl Peoples assumed leadership. Errol Spence and some fighters were given special treatments. So I won't be surprised if Hrgovic will be fighting for the useless interim belt instead of the real IBF belt even without receiving a step aside fee.

I don't think they should have stripped him as long as they agree to get the rematch done ASAP and give the mandatory as guaranteed slot against the winner. The rematch should still have all the belts on the line but they shouldn't be allowed to continually hold the division up and with the rematch now scheduled for December that's the whole year out of action. They should have tried to get the rematch done within a few months in my opinion.

As far as the rematch is concerned, I will reset the poll because it will be interesting to see how forum members vote this time after Usyk was awarded a majority decision in the first fight. At this moment in time, I am absolutely convinced Fury will win the rematch if it goes ahead because he will be the hungrier of the two and he will try to step up in the way he did during his trilogy with Wilder. Obviously I could be proved wrong and not only that, maybe Usyk will step up and be even better (and maybe I will change my opinion as we get closer to the date).

Earlier today, Frank Warren stated both boxers want the rematch and a date/venue will be announced soon. I hope it does go ahead.

My vote will be the same: Usyk. Whilst I expected him to win on points in the first match he almost got the KO had the ref not stepped in so maybe Usyk will get the KO this time. With that being said, Fury now knows what to expect and what he has to do to try win so I expect he's the one that is going to go hell for leather for a KO as that's the only way he's going to win.

Why again Saudi Arabia ? I think they are better places for a boxing game of this caliber to be held on like Europe per example ? Lately UFC and even WWE chose to have big events there at least 2-3 times per year because of the big amount of money they get from this events but Europe should have have this rematch between Fury and Usyk and even if I vote for Fury , I believe Usyk will have win back 2 back games against him.

It's just money. To be fair, without the Saudi's this fight may have never happened in the first place. Turki did say he's planning some events in the UK so at least there's that.

[LFC_Bitcoin]

Not really sure why but I have a feeling Fury will win the rematch. It’s just a hunch but I think losing the first fight will have really hurt his pride and I think he’ll work harder than ever to avenge the defeat which would set up an epic trilogy fight.

It was only round 9 in the first fight where Usyk was much better than Fury. I think Fury has a bigger knockout power than the Ukranian. Any way, we don’t have long to wait now.

[JollyGood]

Hrgovic has been mandatory for years already. At this point, the only way they will make an exception is if the Saudis can bribe Hrgovic and his promoter with enough money to agree to step aside. Considering the magnitude of the Fury vs. Usyk rivalry, it might just be more lucrative to keep stepping aside.

I expect Hrgovic to beat Dubois but if he loses or if it ends in a draw, it will play in to favour with Usyk as the IBF could still try to force him to fight their number one contender but Hrgovic carries the potential whereas Dubois does not. In that scenario, the rematch with Fury could go ahead with the peace of mind that all of the belts will go back on the line and will be made available to the winner. I think that is a fair assessment.

My vote will be the same: Usyk. Whilst I expected him to win on points in the first match he almost got the KO had the ref not stepped in so maybe Usyk will get the KO this time. With that being said, Fury now knows what to expect and what he has to do to try win so I expect he's the one that is going to go hell for leather for a KO as that's the only way he's going to win.

I am not surprised you are confident Usyk will win the rematch, he is after-all an absolutely solid technical fighter but the threat from Fury remains. As you stated, Fury knows what to expect when enters the ring in December but Usyk also knows what to expect too.

It will not be a let down, the rematch should be another stunning spectacle but here is where the difference might be made: Usyk gave 100% and was on top of his game when won but Fury only showed glimpses through rounds 4-6 which was when he clearly dominated and shook Usyk several times.

I really hope there will no nasty surprises before the rematch takes place such as injuries, delays, failed drugs tests or any excuses because boxing fans deserve to see the rematch and also both Fury and Usyk deserve to fulfil the contractual requirements of their rematch.