Late drama as Oleksandr Usyk weight is announced incorrectly at Tyson Fury weigh-in

The Ukrainian was thought to have surpassed his previous career-heaviest weight by 12lb

Alex Pattle
in Riyadh
Saturday 18 May 2024 07:37 BST
Comments
Tyson Fury vows to knock Oleksandr Usyk ‘spark out’ at fiery Riyadh weigh-in

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Oleksandr Usyk’s weight was announced incorrectly at Friday’s weigh-in for his fight with Tyson Fury.

Usyk was thought to have surpassed his previous career-heaviest weight by 12lb, as the Ukrainian’s weight was announced as “233.5lb”.

However, ring announcer Michael Buffer misheard what the officials had said after Usyk took to the scales in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where he will box Fury on Saturday (18 May).

Usyk in fact weighed in at 223lb, narrowly surpassing his career-high of 221lb – at which he beat Anthony Joshua twice, in 2021 and 2022, and Daniel Dubois in 2023.

The revelation came hours after the weigh-in finished, as close-up footage emerged on social media.

Meanwhile, Fury weighed in at 262lb – 15.7lb lighter than he was in October, when he won a controversial decision against Francis Ngannou, after being dropped by the ex-UFC champion. Fury’s weight in that fight was his career-heaviest.

Fury, 35, and Usyk, 37, were separated at Friday’s weigh-in as the Briton shoved the Ukrainian during their face-off – their final staredown before the first bell on Saturday.

Fury will defend the WBC heavyweight title against Usyk, who will put the unified belts on the line. The pair are both unbeaten, and the winner of their bout will become the first undisputed heavyweight champion in 24 years.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in