Oleksandr Usyk vs. Tyson Fury 2: Reflection From the Stands

Oleksandr Usyk (23-0, 14 KOs) and Tyson Fury (34-2-1, 24 KOs) fought once more in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with the former remaining the unified heavyweight champion by unanimous decision.

Upon learning that both men would have their rematch on December 21, I realized that I would be visiting family in Qatar at the same time. Riyadh is approximately 600 km (about 373 miles for the Americans) away from Doha, the city I grew up in. I also still had a valid Saudi Arabian visa due to going for umrah earlier in the year. As such, I decided to make the drive to Kingdom Arena. A decision that was a no-brainer, in my opinion, as this was a heavyweight world title fight between the best two in the division.

I did not go as credentialed media (I had unsuccessfully applied). Rather, I bought a ticket and watched from the stands. Below is a reflection of my time in Riyadh.

Oleksandr Usyk vs. Tyson Fury 2: Reflection From the Stands

Ticket Prices and Turnout

The cheapest tickets, of which many were available, cost only 50 SAR (∼13.30 USD). There were also ones that only cost 150 SAR (∼39.90 USD), 250 SAR (∼66.60 USD) and 600 SAR (∼159.70 USD), with more pricier options available on top of that. A reason for the cheap tickets may very well be due to a lack of demand to see the event in the country itself. Such prices would theoretically aid in making as many people as possible show up.

On the day of the fights, there was a fairly large turnout. However, empty seats were also visible, particularly in the nosebleed section that I was closest to and some of the back row floor seats that I could see. In fact, the seat directly in front of me, to my left, right and a few behind me were also empty. While there were many people in attendance, the event was not a complete sell-out.

It should be noted that Sunday is the beginning of the working week in Saudi Arabia. Riyadh Season boxing events have generally ended around 3 a.m. on a Sunday. Such timings can make these events less accessible to locals as a result (more on access later in this piece). Could turnout be better if these fights were scheduled for a Friday night or ended earlier on Saturday? Perhaps, but it is something yet to be done by organizers.

Fight Week Activities and Accessibility

The weigh-ins for Usyk-Fury 2 were the only pre-fight event I was able to attend, so this section will mainly discuss that. It took place on a Friday evening at a theme park called Wonder Garden. Those looking to go to the weigh-in first had to buy a 50 SAR ticket to access Wonder Garden. The only way to buy the ticket was through Webook, which was also how you could buy tickets to the Usyk-Fury 2 fight.

Unfortunately, that was not something known to a number of British and Ukrainian fight fans that had come, including myself. Buying a ticket on site proved to be a struggle for us as the app on our phones would simply not accept our cards for a long time. There was no option to buy tickets with cash or a machine for our cards, leaving us struggling for nearly 20 minutes before our purchases finally went through.

Being able to see the weigh-in clearly proved to be a struggle as well. After going through a metal detector, the area it took place in was only a few meters away. However, upon reaching that area I realized that it was cordoned off, only accessible to the promoters, fighters, broadcasters, media and those with an invite. The area fans could be in was not ideal for viewing a weigh-in, as views were significantly obstructed. No accommodation had been made for fans that made the trip to Wonder Garden.

Confused by it all, I asked security present if there was a less obstructed view of the weigh-ins. He, I kid you not, proceeded to point me in the opposite direction of the weigh-in stage and told me that I could watch it on a screen that had been set up elsewhere in the theme park. Unable to find this screen, I went back to the area with the obstructed views of the weigh-in stage and stood with what appeared to be several dozen, if not at least a hundred, other fight fans trying to catch a glimpse of the fighters.

A conversation I overheard between two men from the United Kingdom who made the trip to Saudi Arabia saw one of them claim that the press conference was similarly inaccessible. While I can only speak for the weigh-ins, it appears from others who were present that fight week activities were generally inaccessible to fans. I am a big believer in making boxing as accessible as possible and fight week activities were just not accessible for boxing fans who intended to attend in person. This kind of inaccessibility, in my opinion, is just wrong.

The Fights

On fight night, the undercard kicked off with an expected domination from local boxer Mohammed Alakel (2-0, 0 KOs) against Joshua Ocampo (8-34-5, 6 KOs). The next two fights, which saw Andrii Novytskyi (14-0, 10 KOs) and Daniel Lapin (11-0, 4 KOs) cruise to decision wins, were not particularly entertaining and did little to build hype for either man. A competitive affair between Peter McGrail (11-1, 6 KOs) and Rhys Edwards (16-1, 4 KOs) came as a relief, but it also meant that all bouts so far had gone the distance.

The fight between Lee McGregor (15-1-1, 11 KOs) and Isaac Lowe (25-3-3, 8 KOs) began well in my opinion. But by the end, the number of times there was a pause in the action due to a dropped gumshield made things feel farcical. What will get talked about for some time, however, is the split decision win of Johnny Fisher (13-0, 11 KOs) over David Allen (23-7-2, 18 KOs). From within the arena, it felt clear that Allen had won. Incredibly, Fisher got his hand raised in the end instead. A truly baffling job from two of the judges working that fight.

Fisher-Allen was a matchup that felt better suited to being in the United Kingdom. The same can be said of McGregor-Lowe and McGrail-Edwards. I say better suited because all these men have fanbases back home who would have come out to see them and be more invested in their respective fights. In the end, boxing in Saudi Arabia pays significantly more, but this is also a sign that promoters would rather have good UK fights be in the Middle Eastern country purely because of the money.

Serhii Bohachuk (25-2, 24 KOs) and Moses Itauma (11-0, 9 KOs) not only impressed, they also produced the only stoppages of the night. Both men are extremely talented and fight fans should be paying attention to their careers. At just 19, I do think Itauma is a talent to be cautiously optimistic about going forward in the heavyweight division.

The main event saw Usyk do it once more, this time winning unanimously instead of a settling for a split decision. While Fury did well to avoid getting rocked the way he did in the first fight, the Ukrainian still came out on top. Yet again, Usyk established himself as the top heavyweight of today. I could go on and on about his accomplishments and how well he did in the Fury rematch, but that has already been done at length.

In the end, while this may not have been the best card of the year, being able to watch Usyk and Fury fight in person was a privilege. As I said earlier, I consider them the two best heavyweights in the division and they showed why. Whatever Usyk and Fury have in store going forward in their careers, it is hard to imagine that it will beat what they have put on in 2024.

A Lack of Women’s Fights

Since boxing events began being held under the Riyadh Season banner in Saudi Arabia, only one fight has featured women. What is baffling about this is that women have competed in other sports in the country. The Aramco Saudi Ladies International, held every year since 2020, has seen several female golfers compete. This year also saw the country host the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) Finals. Over in the world of mixed martial arts, the Professional Fighters League (PFL) held six events in Saudi Arabia, all but one of which featured at least one bout between women.

With women having regularly competed in sporting events in Saudi Arabia of late, it is baffling to see the lack of women boxing on these cards. Given all the boxing promoters that have been involved in these shows, the fact that they have combined to put on a total of one women’s fight so far is frankly embarrassing. Whether they eventually decide to have any women’s boxing going forward remains to be seen.