Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk showdown hit by late change just a day before heavyweight rematch in Saudi
A last-minute change has been made ahead of the showdown between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk.
The two heavyweights clashed in one of the biggest fights of all time in May in Saudi Arabia.
Usyk became the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world with the Ukrainian awarded victory by a via split decision verdict from the three judges.
Ahead of Saturday’s rematch in Riyadh, a late judging change has been made after one official withdrew due to illness.
Miami’s Fernando Barbosa was not well enough to travel to the Middle East and has been replaced by New Jersey’s Steve Weisfeld.
Weisfeld will score the showdown with fellow American Patrick Morley & Puerto Rican Gerardo Martinez.
Saudi boxing powerbroker Turki Alalshikh earlier this week announced plans for an additional judge to score the rematch.
Alalshikh said the AI-powered judge will score the contest as part of an experiment, but its verdict will not impact the official result.
‘For the first time ever, an AI-powered judge will monitor the fight,’ Alalshikh said.
‘Free from bias and human error brought to you by The Ring.
‘This groundbreaking experiment, which won’t impact the official results, debuts during the biggest fight of the century, #Usyk2Fury, on December 21.
‘Don’t miss history in the making.’
Alalshikh shared a video promoting the judge which stated: ‘For years boxing has been defined by its glory but sometimes that glory is clouded by doubt and controversy. Isn’t it time for fairness to step into the ring?
The promotion added ‘This isn’t just AI, it’s revolutionizing boxing. It’s fairness powered by technology and human expertise. See the revolution unfold on December 21.’
The first fight saw Usyk awarded the contest by two judges, who scored it 115-112, 114-113 in his favour.
The third judge had given Fury the verdict by a 114-113 score.
Fury and Usyk will meet in a 12-round rematch at the Kingdom Arena as the Gypsy King seeks to bounce back from his only defeat in professional boxing career.
