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Mike Coppinger, ESPN Boxing Insider
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — Tyson Fury, sporting a burly beard, leather jacket, jeans and shoes, weighed a career-high 281 pounds Friday evening at the Wonder Garden carnival for his unified heavyweight championship rematch with Oleksandr Usyk on Saturday.
Fury (34-1-1, 24 KOs) was cleanshaven, shirtless and in track pants when he weighed 262 pounds in May. The 36-year-old was dropped in Round 9 of that bout for the undisputed heavyweight championship, which he lost via split decision.
Ukraine’s Usyk, the defending heavyweight champion, weighed 226 pounds — a 55-pound difference to the challenger — in a tracksuit with a T-shirt and shoes. The 2012 Olympic gold medalist was shirtless in jeans when he tipped the scales at 223.5 for the first meeting.
There is no weight limit in heavyweight boxing.
Fury’s previous career-high weight was in February 2020, when he was 277.7 for his heavyweight championship rematch with Deontay Wilder. Fury won that bout via seventh-round TKO. Fury boxed at range in the December 2018 meeting with Wilder that ended in a draw. He was 256½ for that bout.
Fury, too, used his jab from distance against Usyk. His increased weight suggests the Gypsy King could attempt to fight Usyk in a similar manner as the Wilder rematch, when he deployed a seek-and-destroy strategy with nonstop pressure.
“I’m pretty lean,” Fury told ESPN last week. “Other than the big beard, I’m doing well. I’m in good shape and I’m fit as a fiddle. I’ll be ready for Saturday night.”
Fury held camp in Malta rather than England, where he resides, to minimize distractions. He said he hasn’t spoken to his wife, Paris, in three months as he looks to avenge the first defeat of his illustrious career.
Fury said that he’s far more prepared this time around and that he’s been sparring four times a week.
He suffered a serious cut over his left eye while sparring for the first fight, which was postponed from February to May. Fury said he barely sparred in the five-week lead-up because he was worried the gash would reopen.
Fury is ESPN’s No. 2-ranked heavyweight. Usyk, 37, is the No. 1 pound-for-pound boxer.
The former undisputed cruiserweight champion cleaned out the 200-pound weight class and then went on to collect the WBA, WBO and IBF heavyweight titles with a pair of wins over Anthony Joshua.
Usyk (22-0, 14 KOs) will be competing at heavyweight for the seventh time.
Fury is listed at 6-foot-9 with an 85-inch reach. Usyk, a southpaw, is 6-3 with a 78-inch reach.