![John Fury headbutt]()
Ahead of a May 18 heavyweight title fight between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk that is literally a quarter-century in the making, Fury's dad John got a tad too amped up.
With the camps coming together on Monday and scream-chanting their beloved boxer's names back and forth at each other, the elder Fury decided to get physical by headbutting a dude from Usyk's camp.
https://twitter.com/oocmma/status/1790004965403980048
I say the bout is a quarter-century in the making because the winner will own no fewer than seven different heavyweight championship belts and become the first undisputed heavyweight champ since Lennox Lewis all the way back in the year 2000. When the Y2K scare was still a thing. Back then, John Fury was probably about the age of the guy he headbutted. Father Time has apparently not stopped him from mixing it up with foes unknown who oppose his son.
Deploying some classic British profanity, Tyson reacted to his old man's antics.
https://twitter.com/oscarswillis/status/1790033396992802955
If this portends the competitive ferocity to come for the actual fight, we're in for a barn burner on Saturday in Saudi Arabia. So much is at stake, including undefeated records for Fury (34-0-1, 24 KOs) and Usyk (21-0, 14 KOs). DraftKings lists Fury as a narrow
-120 moneyline favorite. Despite the fighters' history of knockouts, it's expected that the showdown will go the distance, with -320 odds on the Over 10.5 rounds.
Fury really has something to prove, considering his last bout in October was a split-decision win over Francis Ngannou that some people believed was an unworthy victory. Meanwhile, Usyk floated retirement after his last win over Anthony Joshua in August, and has the very moving storyline of being from Ukraine. Usyk was extremely emotional in dedicating the win to his native country as their war with Russia continues. He also was brought to tears recalling how his late father didn't get to see him win the Olympic gold medal.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJJPqVss2gQ
There's just so much going on with this fight. Some of the highest stakes, most worthy adversaries, and compelling storylines you could ever ask for in a boxing match.
For just a touch of tale of the tape-style analysis: The towering 6-foot-9 Fury has a massive seven-inch reach advantage over Usyk, which I think will be enough to get him a win via decision. However, he did show some mortality in his last appearance in the ring. With all that Usyk is fighting for — on top of Fury's father ramming skulls with one of his mates — you certainly can't count "The Cat" out.
