On May 24, 2024, Oleksandr Uysk and Tyson Fury fought for the undisputed heavyweight championship. It was a heavily anticipated bout that lived up to the hype. Usyk won by split decision, handing Fury the first loss of his career.

This was a bout of ebbs and flows as Fury was throwing more punches at the beginning of the fight but Usyk was more efficient with his punches. In the first three rounds, Fury had the edge in punches thrown by a significant margin but Usyk landed a higher percentage.

Fury landed 29.8% of his 92 punches in those first three rounds while Usyk landed 46.5% of his 76 punches. The efficiency caught the judges eyes and Usyk took the early lead in the fight.

In rounds 4-7, Fury’s efficiency increased as his output stayed at a high level. Fury also landed some eye-popping shots in those rounds. He won round four on two of the judges scorecards and won rounds 5-7 on all three judges scorecards.

Fury landed 35.75% of his 179 punches while Usyk landed 37.67% of his 129 punches in those middle rounds. In rounds 8-11, Usyk took over the fight as Fury’s punch output and efficiency slowed down.

Usyk’s consistent punishment of Fury started to take its toll. Usyk won rounds 8-10 on all three judges scorecards and won round 11 on two of the three scorecards. This included a knockdown in round nine as the referee called a knockdown as the ropes held Fury up after a series of Usyk’s punches hurt Fury in a major way.

In those late rounds, Usyk landed 44% of his 155 punches while Fury only landed 28.3% of his 138 punches. This led to a 12th round that both sides felt they needed to win the fight.

In that last round, Usyk landed 18 of his 47 punches while Fury only landed 10 of his 41 punches but those 10 punches caught the judges eyes more than Usyk’s 18 landed punches. All three judges scored the last round for Fury. Winning the last round was not enough for Fury as Usyk won the fight.

How can Fury get a different result this time around on December 21st? How can Usyk beat Fury again?

Keys to Victory for Tyson Fury

The Consistency of the Jab

In the first bout, Fury outperformed Usyk when it came to jabs. He threw at least 24 jabs per round in the first six rounds and 18 or less in the last six rounds.

An orthodox fighter may find it hard to land their jab consistently against a southpaw, especially a southpaw with the defensive prowess of Usyk.

The jab should be used as a distraction punch by Fury to give Usyk something else to think about it. If Fury is able to keep Usyk on the defensive by throwing jabs both up and down stairs with varying speeds, it could be the difference in the fight.

Body Work

It is always essential to work the body against a fighter with great endurance and movement. The movement can be slowed down by an accumulation of punishment.

In the first fight, Fury did not go to the body nearly enough. Usyk out landed Fury to the body, 70-46. Now, a big part of this is their height difference. Fury is 6’9″ and Usyk is 6’3″, so its easier for Usyk to hit the body of Fury.

Fury has to make it a priority to go to the body of Usyk. Usyk’s one obvious weakness seems to be body shots. Fury’s path to a knockout could open up with body punishment. Even if a knockout is not available, maybe Uysk’s late fight surge can be stopped by body punishment.

Stop Playing So Much

We all have that one friend that plays too much. They may always crack jokes, even in serious situations or conversations. They may be the prankster that you love but also gets on your last nerve. Tyson Fury strikes me as that type and he can’t play around with Usyk.

A big part of the reason Fury was down on the cards after the first three rounds was the fact that he was playing around. Fury will not be able to get in the head of Usyk, none of his mind games will work on Usyk. There is no need to even waste time, trying that in this bout.

Keys to Victory for Oleksandr Usyk

Pre-heat the Oven

In the first bout, it took Usyk a while to start out throwing Fury. Usyk didn’t throw more punches than Fury until round eight. In this bout he should be more active with his punch output from the beginning of the fight. He may be able to wear down Fury earlier if he is more active.

Smother Tyson’s Offense

In the middle rounds of the first bout is where Fury has his most success. He was able to catch Usyk on his way in with uppercuts, both to the head and body.

Usyk needs to avoid coming in from outside of range, which allows Fury to time him on the way in. Usyk can stay inside range and be defensively responsible at the same time.

Use the Jab

This goes hand and hand with preheating the oven. In the first fight he threw 147 jabs compared to 286 for Fury. Fury has the reach advantage but Usyk should jab his way on the inside and then stay within that range to always be in position to attack.

Prediction

The first fight was an instant classic. I believe this fight will be a great fight as well but Usyk will win by unanimous decision instead of split decision this time around. He will put his foot on the gas earlier in the fight, leading to more rounds won by Usyk.