What we want each time we sit down to watch a main-event prizefight is something historic, something violent, something unforgettable.
With stakes higher than any other bout of the past generation – the undisputed heavyweight title of the world – Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury delivered upon that promise in their first meeting, and that May 18 split-decision triumph by Usyk is BoxingScene’s Fight of the Year.
The value of that victory was seen again last week, when Ukraine’s Usyk 23-0 (14 KOs) topped the May triumph with a more convincing unanimous-decision (116-112 on all three scorecards) against the far heavier, taller and longer Fury.
Usyk, a 37-year-old former undisputed cruiserweight and Olympic heavyweight champion, has spent his career remaining in indefatigable shape while developing a master boxing mind that solved all of the best cruiserweights of his era, set up back-to-back victories over former champion Anthony Joshua and broke the spirit of young lion Daniel DuBois, the new IBF heavyweight champion.
