“It has to take place on the 23rd of December, in Riyadh, in Saudi Arabia,” Usyk told Boxing News. “We have it in contract, on paper. It did disturb me [watching Fury vs. Ngannou]. It did disturb me, I was worried a lot. [But] I would give a maximum of three rounds to Ngannou. Frank Warren used to talk a lot of things, blaming me for something that never happened. And, you know what? We have a contract and the contract says that the fight has to take place on Dec. 23, no matter what.”
Usyk’s words were echoed by his promoter, Alex Krassyuk. He added: “In his mind, he can [delay the fight], but legally he’s obliged to fight Oleksandr on the 23rd. He will suffer legal consequences. If we are responsible – by ‘we’ I mean our team and Fury’s team – if we are responsible people and we keep our word, and we keep what we have signed on paper, we have to comply with what is on paper.
“The world wants to see the undisputed heavyweight championship, not just the clash between Tyson and Usyk. They want to see the fight between Tyson and Usyk for the undisputed Oleksandr Usyk fires back at Tyson Fury with fresh demand after Francis Ngannou fight | Boxing | Sport. That’s what has to happen on the 23rd.