Who is the Real Heavyweight Champion?

By Boxing News - 05/30/2023 - Comments

By Ken Hissner: On September 25, 2021, WBA, WBC, WBO, and IBF Cruiserweight champion Oleksandr Usyk, 18-0, became the “other” heavyweight champion defeating Anthony “AJ” Joshua, 24-1, by scores of 117-112, 116-112 and 115-113 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in Tottenham, UK. In a rematch, Usyk defeated Joshua again in August of 2022 by split decision, which was his last fight.

On November 28, 2015, the “other” champion Tyson “The Gypsy King” Fury, 24-0, defeated WBA, WBO, IBF, IBO champion Wladimir “Dr. Steelhammer” Klitschko, 64-3, at the Nordrhein-Westfalen, Duesseldorf, ESPRIT Arena.

On December 8th, he was stripped of his IBF title, and Charles Martin took over. On October 12, 2016, he vacated the WBO and Joseph Parker took over and vacated the IBO and WBA titles, and Joshua took over.

After scoring a pair of non-title fights which at one time were not allowed, Fury fought a draw with WBC champion Deontay “The Bronze Bomber” Wilder, 40-0, at Staples Center, L.A., California, getting one judge’s score of 114-112, the other to Wilder, 115-111 and 113-113. Fury was down in the ninth and twelfth rounds.

After drawing with Klitschko, Fury stopped Germany’s Tom Schwarz, 24-0, for the WBO Inter-Continental title, in June of 2019. In September, he received 47 stitches to a cut over the right eye defeating Otto Wallin, 20-0, of Sweden. Both fights were in Las Vegas, Nevada.

In a rematch with Wilder, 42-0-1, Fury stopped him in seven rounds, having him down in the third and fifth rounds, winning the WBC title in February 2021. In October, in their third meeting, Fury knocked out Wilder in eleven rounds in October both in Las Vegas, Nevada. This was a month after Usyk won the WBA, WBO, and IBF titles.

In April of 2022, Fury stopped Dillian Whyte, 28-2, in six rounds. Then in December stopped Derek Chisora, 33-12, in ten rounds, both in the UK. The same Chisora that Usyk had defeated after giving up his Cruiserweight title winning to heavyweight fights stopping Chazz Witherspoon, 38-3, and then Chisora.

Fury and Usyk have been going back and forth negotiating with Fury; the bigger crowd pleaser though only having the WBC title, wants the larger end of the purse, with Usyk holding three titles, WBA, WBO, and IBF. Usyk seems to have accepted it, but neither has signed on the dotted line.

Usyk is managed by Egis Klimas and promoted by Alexander Krassyuk. Fury is managed by MTK Global and promoted by Bob Arum’s Top Rank per Boxrec.com.

Fury at 6:09” is from the UK while living in Nevada. He is 33-0-1 with 24 stoppages. Usyk is 6:03, a southpaw, from Ukraine, living in California up until his country was invaded by Russia and returned to Ukraine. He is 20-0 with 13 stoppages.

So, who is the real heavyweight champion, and when will they meet to unify the four titles?