Fans wonder if Tyson Fury can enter his DAZN PPV rematch with unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk without cutting his long beard in their headliner at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh.
Fury's Face Fix
The chin could be Fury's way of softening the blows Usyk will throw at him in order to avoid a knockout. Have a Paul Bunyan the lumberjack's chin could save Fury from being knocked out by Usyk, giving him a chance to win on the scoreboards.
It's not really fair if Fury has a beard that's defense like historic The Maginot Line. Should Usyk find a way to defeat this defensive fortress? Will the chin defense hold up under the strategic attacks of Usyk?
Undisputed welterweight champion Artur Beterbiev can fight with a chin, but he's not the same length as Fury, and he's had no trouble landing heavy punches the way Gyspsy King has.
“Knock him out. That's what me and (trainer) Sugar (Hill Steward) are planning, to get him out of there,” Tyson Fury told Fight Hub TV, revealing his main goal for the rematch with Oleksandr Usyk on Saturday night.
“Last time I did everything perfectly. I didn't understand. It was a close fight. This time it will be a different fight. I will be a different person, a different fighter. Last time I was 40%. 110% this time.
“It's not true. I did some sparring, but not as much as I wanted. Let's say that. I don't want to make excuses, but let's just say that the real Tyson Fury will show up on Saturday night. I believe I will knock him out. I don't think I will do that. I know I will,” Fury said.
If Fury fails to knock Usyk out and gets stopped himself, we'll see if Turki Alalshikh is still interested in paying him big money for his fights as it would be his third straight, real loss if you count what should have been a loss to Francis Ngannou October 28, 2023
“When he attacks, I will destroy him for sure. I have always been fearless in heavyweight waters. I've proven it more than once. I'm here to put on a great show and get back everything I've lost,” said Fury.
Tyson's resume is too limited to say he's “always been fearless” throughout his career as the only two notable world-class fighters he's faced and beaten were a then-39-year-old Wladimir in 2015 and Deontay Wilder. Klitschko was obviously old and washed up, and Wilder was a shaky fighter whose best career win before the Fury fight was against 40-year-old Luis Ortiz.
Even in Wilder's case, it's fair to point out that he earned two knockout wins over Fury in fights #1 and #3. That count that referee Jerry Reuss gave Fury in the 12th round of the first fight was so crazy. In the third fight, Fury got what many thought was a long count after Wilder dropped him in the fourth round. Fury has a checkered past in terms of avoiding defeat, with referees making strange decisions that went in his favor.
Fury's weight
“I'm the heaviest I've been in years. I weigh about 295 lbs. Show me the money. I am a prize fighter; that's what i do. So, Klitschko wants another hiding. I'm the man who can do it,” Fury said of Turki Alalshikh's alleged interest in arranging a rematch between them.
Fury is clearly nowhere near 295 or even 280. His weight looks closer to 255 to 260. A fight against 48-year-old Wladimir Klitschko is unlikely to be an option if Fury loses to Usyk on Saturday night; that would take away a lot of interest from the small number of fans who would want to see that game.
