Tyson Fury has insisted that Oleksandr Usyk would have been ‘in trouble’ as he shared an image of his toned physique following the postponement of their undispited heavyweight bout.
The Gypsy King suffered a severe cut above his right eye on Friday while sparring, which has been labelled by his promotion team as a ‘freak cut’.
As a result, his long-awaited clash with the Ukrainian, which had been set for February 17, has been postponed, with the wound requiring stitches.
Fury was keen to dispel any suggestion that he had been unprepared to face the southpaw. He posted an image of his fight-ready physique in a social media post, which he accompanied with a confident claim that he would have won the contest if it had gone ahead as planned.
‘Cant help getting injured in sparring,’ he wrote. ‘But what I can say was Usyk was in trouble. I am in fantastic shape. I will reschedule soon as I can. 2024 a massive year for team GK.’
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The Gypsy King was keen to show that he was in top shape as he prepared for the huge clash
Fury appears to have undergone an even more remarkable body transformation than the one he underwent for his clash against Francis Ngannou in October last year
Fury looked markedly leaner than he did in his last bout against Francis Ngannou in October last year. The 35-year-old has always joked about his weight, and recently opened up to Mail Sport about his ‘love handles’.
He is no stranger to remarkable body transformations when in and out of the ring, though it appears he had lost even more weight in preparation for the Usyk clash than in previous outings.
Following news of the postponement, The Telegraph reported that an accidental head clash was behind the cut to Fury, causing him to need 15 stitches to patch it up.
Usyk is still hoping to box on that February 17, with IBF mandatory challenger Filip Hrgovic named as a possible opponent but any clash with Fury is now on ice.
Queensbury Promotions described the incident in Riyadh as ‘freak’, with the blow coming above Fury’s right eye.
‘The cut, which opened above Fury’s right eye, required urgent medical attention and significant stitching, and will obviously require a period of recovery, scuppering any possibility of the fight with Usyk taking place on February 17 in Saudi Arabia,’ a statement said.
Tyson Fury sustained a nasty laceration above his right eye which has postponed his next fight
Oleksandr Usyk is still hoping to box on February 17, with IBF mandatory challenger Filip Hrgovic named as a possible opponent
In that earlier statement, Fury had expressed his disappointment at picking up the injury and his sadness for ‘everyone involved in this huge event’.
‘I am absolutely devastated after preparing for this fight so long and being in such superb condition,’ a dejected Fury said.
‘I feel bad for everyone involved in this huge event and I will work diligently towards the rescheduled date once the eye has healed.
‘I can only apologise to everyone affected including my own team, Team Usyk, the undercard fighters, partners, and fans as well as our hosts and my friends in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.’