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Tyson Fury insisted Oleksandr Usyk received an early Christmas present after challenging the Ukrainian’s unanimous decision victory in the second leg in Riyadh.
Fury lost 116-112 on all three judges’ lists as his bid to avenge his only career loss ended with the outstanding Usyk retaining his WBA, WBC and WBO titles.
Promoter Frank Warren said he was “flabbergasted” by both the result and the wide margin of victory – and Fury agreed.
“I could feel a bit of Christmas spirit in there and I think he got a little Christmas present from their judges. An early Christmas present,” said Fury, who lost his first fight in May by split decision.
“I was convinced that I won that fight again. I thought I won both fights, but again I went home with two losses on my record. I will always believe until the day I die that I won that fight.
“I will not cry over spilled milk. It happened now. I know boxing, I’ve been in it all my life and you can’t change any decision.
“I will always feel a little hard done by. Not a little, actually a lot. When you don’t get knocked out, here’s what happens. You can’t guarantee victory.”
Fury said he would need time to think about his future, which is now up in the air after back-to-back defeats, even if the British clash against Anthony Joshua continues to have mass appeal.
When asked if we will see him fight again, he replied: “You may, you may not. Who knows. We’ll talk about that next year.
“What’s next for me? I’m going home and have some free time. For sure. I’m going home and have a merry Christmas. I was away for 12 weeks working for this fight.
“I’m going home now and enjoy myself. We have a nice Christmas ahead of us in the Fury house and thank God we both got out of the ring in one piece.”
Usyk invited Saudi Arabia’s powerful boxing broker Turki Alalshikh to arrange a rematch with Daniel Dubois after the British IBF champion entered the ring during the post-fight interview.
Dubois was knocked out in the ninth round by Usyk in August 2023, but has since made an impressive comeback, culminating in his explosive victory over Anthony Joshua in October.
“I want my revenge. I want my revenge Usyk! Well done tonight, well done. God bless. I want my revenge for the robbery last time. Let’s go, let’s go. Do it, Frank!” Dubois said.
Usyk replied: “Your Excellency, you are fighting Daniel Dubois. Thank you very much.
“I can do more. I’m ready to fight (Dubois), no problem. The next fight is no problem. Now I want to go home and rest.”
Usyk paid tribute to Fury who took part in another classic meeting of the compelling rivalry.
“He’s a great fighter, a great opponent and it was a great 24 rounds. An incredible 24 rounds in my career. Thank you very much,” said Usyk.