Ahead of fighting for the right to be crowned undisputed heavyweight champion, WBC title holder Tyson Fury reflects on his journey to the top of boxing; watch Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk live on Sky Sports Box Office on Saturday, May 18

At 20-years-old, Tyson Fury had already declared his intention to be world champion. Now, 16 years on, he has the opportunity to do something no heavyweight has achieved for a quarter of a century.

The WBC heavyweight title holder faces WBA, WBO and IBF unified king Oleksandr Usyk in Riyadh on Saturday May 18, live on Sky Sports Box Office, in a bid to become the first undisputed champion in boxing’s blue-ribband division since Lennox Lewis beat Evander Holyfield in 1999.

READ NEXT :Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk: Timing, pricing, booking details for undisputed heavyweight showdown on Saturday May 18

Watching back a video of himself talking about those ambitions at a time when he had barely a handful of professional fights under his belt, Fury is in no doubt what he would tell his younger self as he stands on the verge of making boxing history.

“What would I say? I think I had it all figured out, didn’t I?” Fury told Sky Sports. “You’re going to be world champion, yes.

“I can be world champion, be No 1 in the world, be the best and prove it – a young kid, a long time ago. I’m 36 this year so that was 16 years ago.

“I always believed, even when other people didn’t, that I would be a star and make millions of dollars from fights.

Fury and Usyk will clash for all four heavyweight belts in Saudi Arabia on May 18, over a year since they were first due to meet in the ring

Tyson Fury was left baffled after Oleksandr Usyk sent him a message just days before the rivals finally meet in the ring.

Fury and Usyk will clash in Saudi Arabia on Saturday week to crown the first undisputed heavyweight world champion since Lennox Lewis in 1999. The pair were first pencilled in to fight at Wembley last April before December and February dates also fell by the wayside.

READ MORE NEWS :Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk: Timing, pricing, booking details for undisputed heavyweight showdown on Saturday May 18

But the first bell will finally ring in 10 days’ time and Usyk made sure to tell Fury he will see him in Riyadh. “Hey, my friend. Don’t be afraid, I will not leave you alone,” he said on a documentary ahead of the clash. When Fury was shown the message, he asked: “What does that even mean? Don’t be afraid I won’t leave you alone?”

Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk are set to lock horns in a huge bout on May 18 with each fighter attempting to etch their name in boxing history as the first undisputed heavyweight champion since 1999. The stakes couldn’t be higher as the pair will go head to head for the prestigious WBC, WBA, WBO, and IBF titles.

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Fury has, however, admitted he faces a tough task later this month if he is to remain undefeated. “Oleksandr Usyk’s a real bad man and to underestimate Usyk you’d be a mug,” he told Queensberry Promotions. “So I’m training hard for him, I’m doing everything I can. I respect Usyk as a man. I respect his career as well – Olympic champion, undisputed cruiserweight champion, unified heavyweight champion.

“You have to respect that, I’m not fighting some guy who’s had 14 and won 11. I’m fighting the real deal – as real deal as Holyfield. I’m looking forward to the challenge. He’s a southpaw, he’s got good footwork so they say, good boxing ability, technically sound. He’s proved he can mix it with the big heavyweights because he’s beat Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois. I’m messing with an elite fighter.”

RELATED NEWS :TYSON FURY WILL BE CHASING A GHOST OLEKSANDR USYK BACKED TO WIN UNDISPUTED HEAVYWEIGHT FIGHT BY TONY BELLEW

And Fury’s promoter Frank Warren has no doubts about his fighter’s mentality. “I’m confident we are going to get a vintage performance, I spoke to him during the week,” he told talkSPORT. “He’s in a very good shape I think, and although he had that cut it has come good as he has had back-to-back camps.

Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk will meet in Saudi Arabia on May 18 to crown the first undisputed heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis in 1999

Tyson Fury explains how Oleksandr Usyk can beat him in their undisputed fight in Saudi Arabia later this month.

The pair will meet on May 18 to crown the first undisputed heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis in 1999. The rivals were due to clash three months ago, but the bout was rescheduled when Fury suffered a cut in one of his final sparring sessions.

READ MORE NEWS :Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk: Timing, pricing, booking details for undisputed heavyweight showdown on Saturday May 18

Fury is set to go into the fight as the favourite, having dismissed Usyk as a blown-up cruiserweight following the Ukrainian’s move up a weight division. But the Brit has now admitted he will have to have a greater desire than his fellow champion on the night.

“I’m messing with an elite fighter who got more than boxing ability,” he told Queensberry Promotions. “He’s stubborn, and he wants to win like I do. All of the talent and attributes aside, it will come down to who wants it most on the night.

“If he wants it more than him, he’ll win and if I want it more than him then I’ll win. I just think my will and determination will be more than his on the night.”

Fury is self-assured that he will confirm his standing as the top fighter of his generation with a win in the near future. He said: “I respect him, as a man, as a fighter.

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“Everyone has to respect the man’s achievements. Good fighter – I have a tough challenge in front of me. But I’m very confident in my ability and I’m very confident I’ll beat the guy.

“When the cruiserweights step up to the big boys, usually they get found wanting. You can beat the average big ones but you can’t beat the elite big ones, because size really matters.

UPDATE NEWS :TYSON FURY PREDICTS POST-MATCH PLEASANTRIES WITH OLEKSANDR USYK AFTER BOUT I DON’T HAVE ANY ANIMOSITY

Tyson Fury has “never seen footwork” like that of Oleksandr Usyk, according to Tony Bellew. The man who lost to Usyk – the now-unified heavyweight king – via knockout in his final cruiserweight fight lavished praise on the Ukrainian. He says Fury will be left “chasing a ghost” when they fight for all the marbles, live on TNT Sports Box Office on May 18.

After protracted negotiations and a postponement, boxing’s glamour division will finally get its showpiece event in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on May 18, live on TNT Sports Box Office.

Fury will put up his WBC crown, while at risk for Usyk are his unified WBA, WBO, IBF and Ring Magazine belts – gained having twice beaten another British superstar in Anthony Joshua.

If the Ukrainian wins, he’ll be the third man to clean up in two weight classes, following in the footsteps of Naoya Inoue and Terence Crawford, both of whom achieved the feat last year.

Usyk’s previous sweep of a division came at cruiserweight, with his final fight at 200 pounds coming against Bellew in 2018.

Though Fury is the more experienced man at heavyweight, with the height and reach advantage that comes with his natural size, Usyk has technique like no other – a factor Bellew believes will ultimately prove key.

He told fellow former fighter Carl Froch, via the Froch on Fighting podcast: “Oleksandr Usyk, points – 100%. I thought AJ would beat him first time around, so it’s got nothing to do with [me being a previous opponent].

“What’s the style [Fury] struggles with most? A back-foot fighter. [Usyk] wants you to attack him. He makes an absolute fool of you. He will leave Fury no option but to attack him, because he’ll build up an early lead and Fury will be chasing a ghost.

“Fury is not going to be running after Usyk like a madman because that would be playing into his hands, but there are times he will have to press and that’s where he’ll fall short.

“His judgement of distance…his front foot is so close to you all the time, and you think he’s in range but he’s actually not. I can’t put into words how good he is – the best I faced, by a mile. Fury will never have seen footwork like this.

“Once Usyk’s had a good look and set his traps and figured you out completely…he’s an absolutely formidable, fantastic fighter.”

Joshua has also given his backing to Usyk in the fight against Fury, saying he is a “phenomenal” boxer.

Tyson Fury has said that he could envisage a drinking escapade with Oleksandr Usyk in Morecambe after the pair’s undisputed heavyweight title fight on May 18, which will be shown live on TNT Sports Box Office. Fury, speaking exclusively to TNT Sports, said that he believed the Ukrainian to be “a nice fella” who was “God-fearing”. Fury holds the WBC title, while Usyk holds the WBA, IBO, IBF and WBO

The Gypsy King faces the Ukrainian in Saudi Arabia in a rearranged date after Fury pulled out of the original February 17 event with a cut that he had sustained in training.

Fury holds the WBC heavyweight title, while Usyk is the reigning WBA, IBF, WBO, IBO, and The Ring heavyweight champion, with the winner earning the crown of undisputed heavyweight champion of the world.

The fight, which promises to be one of the most watched fights in boxing history, will be broadcast live on TNT Sports Box Office.

Speaking exclusively to TNT Sports from his training camp in Morecambe, Fury joked that he could envisage a time after the bout where he and Usyk would drink beers together on the Lancashire coast.

“I don’t have any animosity towards fighters that I’ve fought or will fight in the future,” Fury explained.

“[Usyk] seems to be a decent fella. He’s a God-fearing man; he’s got little kids of his own. I can imagine us in the Hurley Flyer sinking ten pints apiece.

“He seems like that type of character, and at the moment, you’ve got a good deal on, two for seven quid. Can’t be bad.”

Both men come into the fight with unbeaten records at stake. Usyk most recently defeated Daniel Dubois, Fury’s compatriot with a ninth-round knockout – the 14th of his professional career.

Fury, however, survived a scare against MMA fighter-turned boxer Francis Ngannou, being dropped by the Cameroonian debutant in the third round, before edging a controversial split decision victory.

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Oleksandr Usyk’s team are not confident about Tyson Fury fighting in May, so they’ve already found a replacement.

Oleksandr Usyk and his team have already lined up a replacement fighter for Tyson Fury if the Briton were to pull out of their blockbuster clash once again in Saudi Arabia. The first undisputed heavyweight title fight in 25 years should be taking place next month in Riyadh when Fury, 35, and Usyk, 37, battle it out.

READ MORE :Oleksandr Usyk promoter admits fears Tyson Fury will withdraw from undisputed world heavyweight title fight as he names replacement if the Gypsy King pulls out

Fury, however, pulled out of the pair’s originally scheduled bout back in February due to a nasty cut he suffered just above the eye in sparring a few weeks out from fight night. He did, though, appear to be in career-best shape before he was forced to delay the fight.

The undefeated British heavyweight hasn’t fought since his controversial split-decision victory over MMA star Francis Ngannou last year, and Usyk’s promoter doesn’t have much confidence that the two heavyweight champions will fulfill their two-fight deal if the Gypsy King was to be beaten next month.

Team Usyk on Tyson Fury Fight

They are starting to have serious doubts about the fight actually happening

Alex Krassyuk, Usyk’s promoter, told Boxing Scene: “Usyk has actually had a triple camp for this fight. He started in September for the fight to take place last December. We showed up to the Ngannou fight to step in the ring to announce the fight for the undisputed. We were then meant to fight on February 17, then we were rescheduled for May. Tyson Fury has withdrawn four times already from this fight.

Oleksandr Usyk‘s promoter Alexander Krassyuk has revealed fears Tyson Fury will withdraw from next month’s undisputed world heavyweight title fight.

The Gypsy King meets Usyk on May 18 in Riyadh as they bid to become the undisputed world heavyweight champion.

The clash had been scheduled to take place in Riyadh on February 17 but was postponed after Fury sustained an injury during camp.

He suffered a severe cut above his right eye on Friday while sparring, which has been labelled by his promotion team as a ‘freak cut’.

READ MORE :Anthony Joshua hints mega clash with Tyson Fury will happen in September and says ‘it’s coming, most definitely’

Krassyuk told Boxing Scene he still has doubts that Fury will step into the ring with Usyk next month, claiming the Gypsy King has already withdrawn four times from the fight.

‘Usyk has actually had a triple camp for this fight,’ Krassyuk said. ‘He started in September for the fight to take place last December.

‘We showed up to the Ngannou fight to step in the ring to announce the fight for the undisputed, but his team jumped and said he didn’t look that good, so Usyk gave him some space to prepare at his camp in Saudi Arabia.

We were then meant to fight on Feb. 17, then we were rescheduled for May. Tyson Fury has withdrawn four times already from this fight.

‘I’ve not got too much confidence in the rematch happening, by the way. If Tyson Fury loses, will he have the confidence to step inside the ring again? Theoretically he can, but we all know what happened in the rematch with Wladimir Klitschko.’

The winner of the highly-anticipated bout will also unify the division for the first time since Lennox Lewis beat Evander Holyfield in March 1999.

Fury is adamant the fight will take place on May 18 – insisting he is focused on beating the Ukrainian boxer.

Fighters have promised to forfeit $10m (£8m) if they pulled out of the fight, but Krassyuk remains doubtful Fury will compete.

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He revealed a replacement fighter has already been lined up in the event Fury withdraws from the contest.

‘The IBF mandatory Filip Hrgovic will be the replacement if [Fury] does it again.

‘He is getting ready for Daniel Dubois on June 1, but instead he will have to be ready on May 18 to replace Tyson for any reason. Otherwise we will lose the [IBF] title. It was one of our conditions.’