Oleksandr Usyk has landed an early blow against Tyson Fury after coming out on top in the coin toss which was used to determine the third judge who will score their fight
Oleksandr Usyk has landed an early blow against Tyson Fury after coming out on top in the coin toss which was used to determine the third judge who will score their fight Oleksandr Usyk has landed an early blow against Tyson Fury after coming out on top in the coin toss which was used to determine the third judge who will score their fight
The third and final judge for Tyson Fury’s fight against Olekansdr Usyk on Saturday night has been decided… by a coin toss.
Fury is set to face off against Usyk in a hotly-anticipated fight in Riyadh in a repeat of the first clash back seven months ago when the Ukrainian handed the Gypsy King his first defeat. Everything has been carefully planned for the blockbuster occasion, apart from the all important judges after a late change of plan.
The three judges were supposed to be Gerardo Martinez of Puerto Rico and American duo Pat Morley and Fernando Barbosa. But the fight was thrown into confusion in the build-up after Barbosa pulled out, having been deemed too ill to fly to Saudi Arabia.
Two possible replacements were flown into Riyadh – Panama’s Ignacio Robles and America’s Steve Weisfeld – but there was initially no agreement on who would score the fight. Now, in a remarkable turn of events, Robles was selected by the toss of a coin, which was seen by a member of the Fury and Usyk camp on Saturday.
That represents an early win for Usyk, who had wanted Robles to join Martinez and Morley ringside on Saturday night. Speaking to Sky Sports on Friday, promoter Frank Warren had suggested a coin toss could settle the row.
He said: “There are two standby judges, both of them are flying in and we have got to decide which one of them it is going to be. We want one of them, Usyk’s team want the other. So I have suggested we flip a coin.”
Interestingly, there will also be a fourth judge, which is powered by artificial intelligence, in an experiment that won’t have any say on the result. The referee is Robert Ramirez Jr of Puerto Rico.
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Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk are set to lock horns again on December 21 with the Brit attempting to avenge his defeat by the Ukrainian in May. Victory for Fury could also set up a huge domestic showdown with bitter rival Anthony Joshua next year
Explaining the AI move, Saudi boxing chief Turki Alalshikh wrote on X: “For the first time ever, an AI-powered judge will monitor the fight. Free from bias and human error brought to you by The Ring. This groundbreaking experiment, which won’t impact the official results, debuts during the biggest fight of the century, #Usyk2Fury, on December 21.”
Fury will be fighting at his heaviest on Saturday night having weighed in at a career high of 281lb. Nevertheless, Warren has promised an explosive rematch.
“There’s going to be a war tomorrow,” he said after the weigh-in. “Tyson has come to get those belts back; that’s what he’s here for, that’s what he’s sacrificed for, and I believe that’s what he’ll do. He’s heavier but I think the other guy is as well.
“You can analyse it whatever way you like but tomorrow night, we’re going to find out who is the best. You know both guys are coming to fight; it’s going to be exciting and you’re going to see something extra, extra special.”
Mirror – Sport