Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (May 29, 2024) - Undisputed heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk will defend his title against former unified title holder Tyson Fury December 21, 2024, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, as announced by his Excellency Turki Alalshikh, chairman of Saudi Arabia's General Entertainment Authority, on Wednesday.

Usyk's Historic Victory

Earlier this month, Usyk became the undisputed heavyweight champion by defeating Fury via a split decision. The closely contested bout saw one judge scoring the fight 114-113 for Fury, while the other two judges scored it 114-113 and 115-112 for Usyk. This victory made Usyk the first undisputed heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis defeated Evander Holyfield in their 1999 rematch in Las Vegas. For Fury, it marked the first defeat of his professional career.

The Two-Fight Deal

The pair had initially signed a two-fight deal that included a rematch on October 12. However, Alalshikh's announcement confirms that the rematch has been rescheduled to the end of 2024.

In his Twitter post, Alalshikh stated, "The rematch between the Undisputed Champion Oleksandr Usyk and the Champion Tyson Fury is now scheduled on the 21 of December 2024 during Riyadh Season... The world will watch another historical fight again... Our commitment to boxing fans continues... We hope you enjoy it."

Fury's Determination

Fury, expressing his determination to correct his record in the rematch, said, "I believe I won the fight, but I'm not going to sit here and cry and make excuses. I believe he won a few of the rounds, but I won the majority of them. What can you do? We both put on a good fight, the best we could do. ... People are siding with the country at war. But make no mistake, I won that fight ... and I'll be back. We've got a rematch clause."

Promoter's Confidence

Frank Warren, Fury's promoter, expressed confidence in Fury's ability to turn things around in the rematch. "I think he can, he believes he can," Warren told Sky Sports. "It was a fight of two halves. Tyson knows what he has to do, and I'm sure Usyk does. Both of those guys were in an absolute war -- that has taken a lot out of both of them. It will be interesting to see when it does happen who it has impacted the most."