Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk are not booked for a bare-knuckle fight, but BKB Bare Knuckle Boxing CEO David Tetreault says the matchup has at least been raised with people around both heavyweights.
Fury remains tied to a busy boxing lane after the Anthony Joshua plan got another fresh push. Usyk has also stayed in crossover talk after vacating heavyweight titles before a possible final fight and after Demetrious Johnson urged him to leave the Fury rivalry behind.
Tetreault discussed the idea with Mike Babcock during a TMZ Sports interview. Babcock asked him to name a dream fight he would want to stage in BKB, and Tetreault went straight to Fury and Usyk.
David Tetreault Names Fury vs Usyk As BKB Dream Fight
Tetreault said the idea has not turned into an announced fight, but he framed it as the top fantasy booking for the promotion.
“Well, I’ll tell you the ultimate dream fight that we really would love to do, right? And we’ve had conversations with both camps. Okay? Tyson Fury versus Oleksandr Usyk. That is the ultimate dream fight.”
When Babcock followed up on the reference to both camps, Tetreault named Fury manager Spencer Brown and Usyk manager Egis Klimas.
“I’ve had conversations with Spencer Brown. I’ve had conversations with Egis. I’ve been with Oleksandr at bare-knuckle events in Europe. We’ve sat down. We’ve talked about it. I can’t say that it’s happening, but as a dream fight, 100%.”
Tetreault then pointed to Fury’s background as part of why the idea makes sense to him under bare-knuckle rules.
“And look at the heritage of somebody like Tyson Fury. They’re travelers. That’s their thing, right?”
Babcock asked whether Usyk had rejected the idea when it came up. Tetreault said that was not the case.
“Oh, no. I mean, he goes on record saying that he would consider bare-knuckle boxing.”
Tetreault also said Fury has not closed the door on the format.
“And 100% Tyson Fury has said, ‘I’ll consider bare-knuckle boxing.’ I’ve talked to Spencer about it and I said I’ve talked to Egis about it.”
Tetreault Says The Fight Would Be Bigger Than Boxing
Asked how big Fury vs Usyk would be for BKB, Tetreault said the event would reach beyond normal boxing promotion.
“It would be, for me, it would just be the biggest event ever in the history of all combat sports.”
“You take it to the level of gladiatorial. Let’s get serious.”
The key limitation is still simple: Tetreault did not say a contract is signed, a date is set, or that either fighter has agreed to compete without gloves. His claim is limited to conversations with both camps and his view that Fury vs Usyk is BKB’s dream heavyweight fight.
BKB is trying to build momentum around boxing names after its Los Angeles push, where Victor Ortiz entered bare-knuckle talk not long after his Floyd Mayweather rematch lane resurfaced. Fury vs Usyk would be a much larger jump, especially after Usyk beat Fury twice in boxing in 2024.
