Tyson Fury faced Oleksandr Usyk once again at the first press conference to launch their December 21st rematch for the unified world heavyweight championship. Mind games between opponents in the lead-up to big fights are not new in the sport of boxing, but Usyk may have upped the ante ahead of his highly anticipated rematch vs. Fury. The men will square off in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on December 21st for a fight available live on DAZN pay-per-view , with Fury looking to avenge his first career loss after falling by split decision to Usyk in their first meeting back in May.

 

Usyk won the undisputed world heavyweight championship on that day, and although he has since vacated the IBF title, the Ukrainian is still seen as the man to beat in boxing's glamour division. On Wednesday, build-up to the Usyk vs. Fury rematch officially kicked off with a press conference in London, and Usyk turned heads by being dressed in tailored black suit, complete with racing gloves, and a cleanly shaven head and face. The 37-year-old added a final touch to the look by carrying a briefcase to the dais, which was placed on the table in front of him and not mentioned until 15 minutes into the press conference. At that point, Usyk revealed that he was playing a "character," likely akin to John Wick or Agent 47, and he opened the briefcase to display two posters from the first fight against Fury.

 

Usyk then asked his opponent to sign the posters, allowing some levity between the heavyweights as Fury commented that he looked "like Shrek" in one of the photos. The light-hearted nature of the moment continued when Usyk returned to his seat, with the WBA (Super), WBC, WBO and IBO champion joking that the posters will be available "tomorrow on eBay."