The board has handed Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk a boxing suspension following their highly anticipated rematch on December 21, which took place at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The fight was a rematch of their first bout in May, which saw Usyk deliver Fury’s first-ever professional loss. The second clash ended with Usyk victorious once again, securing a unanimous decision with all three judges scoring the fight 116-112 in his favor.
Despite the excitement surrounding the contest, boxing fans will have to wait for both fighters to return to the ring due to mandatory rest periods following the full 12-round bout. The board requires boxers to take a three-day rest for each round fought, meaning both Fury and Usyk will be sidelined for a minimum of 24 days before they can fight again.
Medical experts will also assess the fighters to ensure they haven’t sustained any serious injuries. However, the suspension could have lasted longer if the fight had ended in a knockout or technical knockout. In those cases, the fighters would have needed to rest for at least 30 days after a technical knockout or 60 days after a knockout.
In the aftermath of his defeat, Fury was uncertain about his future in the ring, hinting that he may take time off. When asked about his next move, the Gypsy King said, “What’s next for me? I’m going home and having some time off.” He added, “You might do [see me fight], you might not do. Who knows? We’ll talk about that next year.”
Despite Fury’s ambiguity about his future, boxing promoter Eddie Hearn has suggested that Fury could participate in what he called the “biggest fight probably in the history of British boxing,” potentially signaling an exciting return for the heavyweight champion.
Fans will have to wait for the mandatory suspension to pass before they can see either of these two titans in action again.
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