Oleksandr Usyk vs Anthony Joshua rematch will now have prestigious Ring Magazine heavyweight title on the line after Tyson Fury vacated belt that was previously held by Mike Tyson and Muhammad Ali

The Oleksandr Usyk vs Anthony Joshua rematch next weekend is now set to also have the Ring Magazine title at stake after Tyson Fury vacated it on Saturday.

The Gypsy King gave the strongest indication yet his retirement is genuine by dropping the belt, though he is yet to relinquish his WBC heavyweight world title.

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Fury’s retirement saga has dragged on since the first press conference before his fight with Dillian Whyte earlier this year.

He unexpectedly dropped the bombshell on a group of reporters and few believed him at the time.

In truth, many still doubt him now, despite the fact he has reiterated his claim several times since.

Earlier this week, Fury announced that he was planning a comeback to face Derek Chisora in a trilogy bout, however, negotiations stalled and on Friday – Fury’s 34th birthday – he once again said he was quitting the sport for good.

WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman divulged the fact that he spoke to Fury on Friday who insisted he is genuinely retiring, however Sulaiman opted not to clarify whether or not the WBC world title is being vacated.

Now though, Ring Magazine have confirmed that Fury has vacated their belt.

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It must be noted that the Ring belt is recognised by many as being more like a highly prestigious trophy which is added on to the best fights in boxing, rather than a sanctioning body world title in its own right.

This is why many will argue that while Fury still holds his WBC, he is not truly retired.

Regardless, his decision to drop the Ring title opened up the possibility for it to be at stake for the Oleksandr Usyk vs Anthony Joshua rematch next Saturday, live on talkSPORT.

Usyk was ranked number one in the Ring rankings behind champion Fury, with AJ ranked number two.

As such, Ring Magazine have now confirmed their belt will indeed be on the line in Saudi Arabia as well as Usyk's WBA, IBF and WBO world titles.

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“Amongst the fighters, the Ring Magazine belt has so much prestige,” said promoter Eddie Hearn.

“I know for Anthony Joshua, he’s wanted to win this title for a long time.

"This gives him added motivation for victory next week. And I believe, come [next] Saturday night, Anthony Joshua will become the new Ring Magazine world champion.

“First and foremost, AJ wants the victory because he’s a competitor.

"He wants his world heavyweight championship belts back, but the Ring belt was there when it was him and [Deontay] Wilder at the top.

"We were trying to get that belt on the line for big fights then. This is a huge motivation for him going into Saturday.”

Usyk vs Joshua 2 on talkSPORT

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