The most anticipated fight on the Oleksandr Usyk vs. Tyson Fury 2 undercard has been canceled.
Dennis McCann, the European, Commonwealth, and British super bantamweight champion, failed an anti-doping test conducted by the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association (VADA) in the lead-up to his bout with Peter McGrail, Turki Alalshikh announced on Friday afternoon.
As a result, McCann vs. McGrail has been canceled and a full investigation has been launched into McGrail’s failed test by UK Anti-Doping (UKAD).
It is unclear at this stage whether McGrail will remain on the card against a replacement opponent.
Usyk vs. Fury 2 takes place Dec. 21 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
McCann (16-0-1, 8 KOs), 23, is a southpaw represented by Frank Warren’s Queensberry Promotions. He is ranked No. 3 in the world at super bantamweight by the WBO, and a win over McGrail would’ve likely set him up for a world title shot in the near future.
Liverpool’s McGrail (10-1, 6 KOs), 28, represented Great Britain at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. He was brutally knocked out by Ja’Rico O’Quinn in his US debut in December 2023; McGrail was well ahead on the scorecards but walked into a short right hand, which he couldn’t arise from. The finish landed on the short lists for many publications for 2023’s Knockout of the Year and Upset of the Year.
McGrail became the mandatory challenger for McCann’s European and British titles after winning a 10-round decision over Marc Leach in his return fight in April. McGrail followed that up with an impressive second-round body shot knockout of Brad Foster in September.
It is the second blow for the Usyk vs. Fury 2 card in the space of six days. This past Saturday, Alalshikh announced that Israil Madrimov had withdrawn from his fight with Serhii Bohachuk, which was the co-feature for the event. Madrimov is suffering from acute bronchitis and wouldn’t be fit to fight on Dec. 21.
Bohachuk instead takes on Britain’s Ishmael Davis, who lost a majority decision on short notice to Josh Kelly in September on the Anthony Joshua vs. Daniel Dubois undercard at Wembley Stadium.
Madrimov’s Feb. 22 clash with Vergil Ortiz Jr. remains unaffected.
Elsewhere on the Usyk vs. Fury 2 undercard, top prospect Moses Itauma steps up to face Australia’s Demsey McKean, Johnny Fisher and Dave Allen collide in an all-British heavyweight contest, Isaac Lowe battles Lee McGregor, and Ukrainian prospects Andrii Novytskyi and Daniel Lapin return.
Usyk edged a split decision over Fury to win the undisputed heavyweight title in May. The Ukrainian became the first fighter to hold all four heavyweight belts, and in the process became a two-division undisputed champion.
The pair rematch on Dec. 21 for three heavyweight titles.
Uncrowned will bring you round-by-round coverage on the big night.
