Oleksandr Usyk came as close as anyone has to stopping Tyson Fury inside the professional boxing ring.
When the pair fought back in May, the Ukrainian famously landed a huge shot in the ninth round and then followed it up with a barrage of punches that went unanswered. Fury reeled around the ring and was held up by the ropes, which is when the referee administered a standing count.
In the aftermath, many argued that the damage done was enough to earn Usyk a stoppage win, and perhaps in a contest without such high stakes it would have turned out that way.
The Brit survived but the damage was done and he failed to do enough to turn things around before the end of the 12th round when Usyk had his hand raised as the points victor.
Lennox Lewis was the last man to be undisputed in the banner division and told the media he thinks the referee was right to have given Fury the chance to continue rather than stepping in to stop the fight.
“He got hit on the nose, and it made him to back on the ropes. He bounced off the ropes one time. He was playing when he was bouncing off the ropes because he was using the ropes to keep him up.
“I thought the ref was great in that fight because some refs would have stopped it. That ref stayed focused, didn’t stop the fight, and allowed them to box.”
Fury – who will have the chance to win just three of the four belts after the IBF was vacated – claimed he grew overconfident in the first fight and has vowed to be back to his best for the rematch this Saturday in Riyadh.
