The 2024 boxing calendar comes to a conclusion with the blockbuster heavyweight rematch between Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury for the WBA, WBC and WBO titles on Saturday in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Usyk (22-0, 14 KOs) edged a split decision over Fury (34-1-1, 24 KOs) in May to become boxing’s first undisputed heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis in 2000 and the first undisputed heavyweight champion of the current four-belt era.
The undercard for Fury vs. Usyk 1 had two world title fights: Jai Opetaia vs. Mairis Briedis 2 and Joe Cordina vs. Anthony Cacace, as well as a heavyweight final eliminator pitting Agit Kabayel and Frank Sanchez. While Saturday’s card isn’t quite as strong, there are some exciting heavyweight prospects — namely Moses Itauma and Johnny Fisher — featured in step-up bouts.
The Usyk-Fury 2 fight card begins Saturday at 10 a.m. ET and airs live on DAZN pay-per-view for $39.99.
Uncrowned will have live round-by-round coverage of the entire card.
So who wins and how? Let’s break it all down.
Betting odds courtesy of BetMGM.
Heavyweight: Oleksandr Usyk (-160) vs. Tyson Fury 2 (+125)
The first fight between Fury and Usyk was a contender for Fight of the Year.
Usyk, 37, had a better start, but Fury, 36, took over in the middle rounds and began to build momentum.
Usyk knew he had to do something to turn the tide, and he did just that in the ninth round — battering Fury into a standing count, with the referee determining that the ropes held Fury up after the Ukrainian launched a sustained attack on the Brit. Usyk then finished the contest strong by sweeping the championship rounds to win the fight.
In both Usyk’s Anthony Joshua rematch and the Fury fight, the contest was level through eight to nine rounds, but Usyk’s superior engine and stronger finish got his hand raised at the end of the 12 rounds.
Fury has historically improved in rematches. After a competitive first encounter with Chisora, Fury dominated him in the second and third fights. He also put an absolute beating on Deontay Wilder in their rematch after the first bout was ruled a split draw.
Because Fury was forced to postpone his original February date with Usyk to May due to a cut, he claims to have had limited sparring for their first bout, so a more polished performance could be expected on Saturday night. Fury, however, is more battle-worn than Usyk. The Brit has been knocked down on seven occasions in addition to the standing count he was given in his first match with Usyk. Usyk isn’t a proven power puncher, especially not at heavyweight, so Fury’s deteriorating chin could be a worrying sign.
Fury has historically expressed a huge amount of confidence in the build-up to all his fights. He seemed to genuinely believe that he couldn’t be beaten. Now that he has lost for the first time, could that self-belief be affected? Fury’s assertiveness in chaotic buildups and the actual contests themselves has always worked to his advantage, but the lead-up to Usyk-Fury 2 has been much more relaxed, and one wonders if that same tone will translate to the ring. Has Usyk tamed the bully?
Final pick: I expect Usyk’s familiarity with Fury, alongside the reality of Fury being further away from his prime, to result in a more convincing win for Usyk. Usyk wins by unanimous decision.
Super welterweight: Serhii Bohachuk (-800) vs. Ishmael Davis (+500)
Serhii Bohachuk was scheduled to face Israil Madrimov in Saturday’s co-feature, but Madrimov withdrew in early December because of a bout with acute bronchitis. Ukraine’s Bohachuk instead battles a late replacement, Ishmael Davis.
Bohachuk (24-2, 23 KOs) and Davis (13-1, 6 KOs) are both coming off majority decision defeats.
Bohachuk dropped Vergil Ortiz Jr. twice but narrowly fell short on the scorecards in Las Vegas this past August, while Davis stepped in on short notice to face Josh Kelly in September on the Anthony Joshua vs. Daniel Dubois undercard at Wembley Stadium. The Brit was outboxed by Kelly for large parts of the fight but rocked Kelly in the final stanza.
There is little doubt that Bohachuk is an elite fighter at 154 pounds, and he would likely open as the betting favorite against the majority of the top 15.
Davis, on the other hand, has only boxed once past British title level and fell short on that occasion.
Final pick: This is a mismatch on paper. Bohachuk is a big puncher with 23 KOs from 24 wins. I expect him to stop Davis in the middle rounds. Bohachuk wins by KO/TKO.
Heavyweight: Moses Itauma (-1100) vs. Demsey McKean (+550)
Moses Itauma could be the best prospect in boxing.
The 19-year-old made his pro debut just under two years ago and has progressed gradually ever since. His promoters, Frank Warren’s Queensberry Promotions, seem ready to finally let him off the leash on Saturday, just one week shy of his 20th birthday.
Demsey McKean marks a firm step up for the teenage heavyweight sensation. McKean (22-1, 14 KOs), a tall southpaw from Australia, was stopped in the final round by the then-IBF No. 1 Fillip Hrgovic in his most recent fight in August 2023. Prior to that, McKean racked up 22 wins and two top-15 world rankings.
McKean, who has been sparring with Opetaia, is a considerable ask for Itauma (10-0, 8 KOs) at this stage of Itauma’s young career, but to his credit, Itauma has lived up to the enormous hype behind him.
The British prospect steamrolled over the experienced Maurisz Wach in just two rounds this past July. Saturday is his acid test, but Itauma, who has been touted as a possibility to break Mike Tyson’s record as the youngest heavyweight champion ever, has shown us that he is ready for a step up like this.
Final pick: Itauma should be able to break McKean down for a stoppage in the second half of the fight. Itauma wins by KO/TKO.
Heavyweight: Johnny Fisher (-2000) vs. Dave Allen (+750)
Johnny Fisher burst onto the pro scene in 2021 as a raw novice. He had little amateur pedigree and had spent a long time away from the sport to focus on rugby. His return to boxing came after a sparring session with Joe Joyce, where he impressed Joyce’s management team, S-Jam, who now also represents Fisher.
Fisher (12-0, 11 KOs) has made noticeable improvements in the four years since that debut, picking up the Southern Area title on the way and turning into a legitimate heavyweight prospect. His opponent on Saturday, Dave Allen, was the first professional boxer Fisher ever sparred. Allen (23-6-2, 18 KOs) got the better of Fisher in their 2019 training session, but five years is a lifetime in a sport like boxing.
Allen has shared the ring with some of the top heavyweights in the world, mostly falling short, but he has proved to be durable. He has never been stopped before the sixth round. “The White Rhino” was last on the big stage in a poor showing against Frazer Clarke. He has won two tune-up fights since and believes a win here is crucial for him to be able to continue his career on televised shows.
Unlike other Fisher opponents, Allen certainly won’t fall down on the first heavy shot landed. He will be competitive for a few rounds. However, Allen will start to fade late due to his inactivity at this level. He has only fought one fighter with a winning record in almost five years, and he lost that fight. As soon as Allen starts to tire, Fisher will take over and should be able to win inside the distance.
Final pick: Fisher wins by KO/TKO.
Super featherweight: Peter McGrail (-450) vs. Rhys Edwards (+330)
Peter McGrail was supposed to challenge for Dennis McCann’s European, Commonwealth and British super bantamweight titles on this bill. Disappointingly, news broke last week that McCann failed an anti-doping test conducted by the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association in the lead-up to Saturday’s bout.
McCann was subsequently replaced by the unbeaten Rhys Edwards (16-0, 4 KOs), who was previously scheduled to clash with Leon Woodstock in January, so Edwards will have already been training. The Welshman is coming off respectable wins over Brad Foster and Thomas Patrick Ward in his past two bouts, the second of which earned Edwards the WBA Intercontinental title and a top-15 world ranking.
McGrail (10-1, 6 KOs), a 2020 Olympian, also boxed Foster and knocked him out in just two rounds, whereas Foster extended Edwards to 10 ultra-competitive rounds in November 2023.
Uncrowned understands that McGrail-Edwards will be contested at 130 pounds, which is a two division jump up in weight for McGrail and one weight class higher than where Edwards usually competes.
McGrail, nicknamed “The Scouse Lomachenko,” is a very talented fighter with exceptional footwork. He has barely lost a round in his pro career. The only blemish on his record is a one-punch knockout defeat at the hands of Ja’Rico Quinn in December 2023, but considering Edwards’ paltry 25% knockout ratio, McGrail isn’t in much danger of the same happening again on Saturday night.
Edwards is a capable domestic-level fighter, but there is nothing to suggest that he will be successful above that level, while McGrail reached the top of the amateur ranks and clearly has the potential to do the same as a professional.
Final pick: McGrail will comprehensively outbox Edwards. However, Edwards will be too tough to stop, so I expect this one to go the ten-round distance. McGrail wins by unanimous decision.
Quick Picks
Featherweight: Isaac Lowe (+150) vs. Lee McGregor (-190) – McGregor via KO
Light heavyweight: Daniel Lapin (-1000) vs. Dylan Colin (+600) – Lapin via KO
Heavyweight: Andrii Novytskyi (-2000) vs. Edgar Ramirez (+1000) – Novytskyi via KO
Super featherweight: Mohammed Alakel vs. Joshua Ocampo – Alakel via PTS
