Tyson Fury Insists on Victory Despite Split Decision Loss to Oleksandr Usyk

Tyson Fury adamantly denies his defeat to Oleksandr Usyk, insisting that he had done enough to secure the win. Despite losing the Undisputed Heavyweight Championship in a split decision, Fury remains unwavering in his belief that he was the rightful victor.

The boxing community widely perceived Usyk as having won the bout unanimously, with the statistics supporting this view. Jabbr, an AI live-stats company, indicated that while Fury threw more punches, Usyk landed more, including a greater number of high-impact power punches. According to CompuBox numbers, Usyk landed 170 punches compared to Fury’s 157, outperforming even the 127 punches landed by Otto Wallin against Fury. Despite Fury connecting with more jabs to the body—62 compared to Usyk’s 48—Usyk had a better conversion rate at 32.7 percent compared to Fury’s 21.7. Furthermore, Usyk landed 122 power punches, significantly more than Fury’s 95. Notably, in the ninth round, Usyk nearly knocked out Fury, with the referee controversially giving Fury a standing eight count just as Usyk was closing in for the finish.

Following the match, Fury expressed his belief that he had won, stating, “I’ve watched the fight back lots and still got the same answer – I thought I won. Usyk knows he didn’t beat me… I thought I boxed the head right off him for most of the rounds. He busted my nose in round eight, got the 10-8 in round nine and I gave him round ten. But other than that, I didn’t give him any other rounds.”

Fury reflected on the ease of the fight, explaining, “It was actually a lot easier than I thought it’d be. People said he’s hard to hit, I was lighting him up with four-punch combinations and laughing at him. My problem was I probably had too much fun. It was too easy. It was like I was in there with a local amateur boxer. I was enjoying it too much, messing around, and paid the ultimate price in round nine.”

These sentiments echo Fury’s post-fight interview, where he felt the decision should have gone in his favor. He also controversially suggested that Usyk’s win was influenced by the sympathy due to Ukraine’s war with Russia. Despite this, Fury’s condition post-fight indicated a serious concussion, evident when he wished everyone a happy New Year in the ring in May.

In his initial response to the loss, Fury reiterated his belief in his victory, stating, “Oleksandr, I believe I won that fight. I believe he won a few of them, but I won the majority of them. What can you do? It’s one of those things in boxing. His side is at war, so the people are siding with the country at war. Make no mistake, I won the fight in my opinion, and I’ll be back. I’ve got a rematch clause. We run it back in October.”

Fury’s team also propagated the narrative that Fury had sustained a broken jaw, a claim denied by Team Usyk. The current perception is that Fury is struggling to come to terms with the loss, with reports of him being thrown out of a bar in Morecambe for drunken behavior and later seen on his knees in the street, raising concerns about his mental health.

To secure a victory in a rematch, Fury will need to accept the defeat and learn from it. Denial will not help him reclaim his championship.