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BOXING

What heavyweight world titles are on the line in the Fury vs Usyk fight?

The Ring of Fire in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia will see all of the world heavyweight boxing titles on the line for the first time this century.

Jeffrey May
Jeffrey MayJeff_DiarioAS
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(FILES) Britain's Tyson Fury (L) and Ukraine's Oleksandr Usyk (R) challenge each other during a press conference in London on November 16, 2023, ahead of their undisputed heavyweight world championship contest scheduled to take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. While the rest of the boxing world is drooling in anticipation of a genuine heavyweight world title fight that will unify the division for the first time in over 20 years, Tyson Fury insists the May 18, 2024, match-up with Oleksandr Usyk in Riyadh is all about the money. (Photo by Daniel LEAL / AFP)
DANIEL LEALAFP

Saturday, May 18 will see the biggest boxing event of the 21st century take place. It has perhaps flown under the radar a little, with the clash, dubbed the Ring of Fire, taking place not in hallowed ground like Caesar’s Palace or Madison Square Garden, but in the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

The Saudi entry into big-time boxing has been controversial amongst boxing fans, who have largely been critical of the removal of any atmosphere from the arena in favor of filling the seats with disinterested multi-millionaires.

Fight week, particularly for a heavyweight title fight, traditionally sees tens of thousands of boxing fans from all walks of life find their way to Las Vegas or New York, making for a carnival atmosphere that ramps up daily until the climax of fight night. All of that is multiplied by ten when you are talking about the undisputed title.

When boxing came to Riyadh, the criticism was fast and loud. Fans can’t afford to go to Saudi Arabia. And with their notoriously repressive medieval legal system, nobody who is either gay or female would feel safe going. At the very least, alcohol would be off limits, making any idea of a party atmosphere almost impossible for most. The Saudi authorities have made an effort to allay these fears, and while they have managed to put on some successful shows, the events themselves are more notable for how many multi-millionaires you can spot rather than how excited the crowd are.

And all of that is a shame given that this is the biggest fight of the last 25 years. Not since Britain’s greatest champion Lennox Lewis became the undisputed heavyweight champion in 1999 has every single world title been up for grabs.

Tyson Fury is the WBC world heavyweight champion, a title that he has held since 2020. Oleksandr Usyk is the WBA, WBO, and IBF world heavyweight champion. The winner of this fight will be the undisputed heavyweight king, the first time that that has happened in the four belt era. When Lennox Lewis did it, there was no WBO belt in the mix.

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