Usyk vs Briedis

Who won Usyk vs Briedis?

Oleksandr Usyk beat Mairis Briedis by majority decision in their 12 round contest on Saturday, January 27th, 2018, at Arena Riga, Riga.

The scorecards were announced as 115-113, 114-114, 115-113 in favor of winner Oleksandr Usyk.

The fight was scheduled to take place over 12 rounds in the Cruiserweight division, which meant the weight limit was 200 pounds (14.3 stone or 90.7 kg).

This was a semi final of the World Boxing Super Series.

This contest was for the unified cruiserweight championship of the world, with the WBC, and WBO belts on the line.

Usyk vs Briedis stats

Back in January 2018, Mairis Briedis stepped into the ring with an undefeated record of 23 wins, zero losses, and 0 draws.

Oleksandr Usyk made his way to the ring with an unblemished record of 13 wins and 0 draws.

Mairis Briedis was the older man by 2 years, at 33 years old.

Usyk had a height advantage of 2 inches over Briedis. That also extended to a 3-inch reach advantage.

Mairis Briedis fought out of the orthodox stance, while Oleksandr Usyk was a southpaw.

Briedis was arguably the more experienced fighter, having had 10 more fights, and made his debut in 2009, 4 years earlier than Usyk, whose first professional fight was in 2013. He had fought 22 fewer professional rounds, totaling 179 compared to Usyk's 201.

Usyk vs Briedis form

Briedis had won 5 of his most recent fights, stopping 3 of them, going the distance twice.

In his last fight leading up to this contest, he had won against Mike Perez on September 30, 2017, by unanimous decision in their WBC World Cruiserweight championship fight at Arena Riga, Riga, Latvia.

Prior to that, he had won against Marco Huck on April 1, 2017, by unanimous decision in their WBC World Cruiserweight championship fight at Westfalenhalle, Dortmund, Germany.

Going into that contest, he had beaten Simon Vallily on October 15, 2016, by technical knockout in the 3rd round at Echo Arena, Liverpool, United Kingdom.

Before that, he had defeated Olanrewaju Durodola on May 14, 2016, by technical knockout in the 9th round at Arena Riga, Riga, Latvia.

He had won against Danie Venter on February 21, 2016, by technical knockout in the 2nd round at Arena Riga, Riga.

Usyk remained undefeated as a professional, stopping 3 of his last 5 opponents.

In his last fight before this contest, he had defeated Marco Huck on September 9, 2017, by technical knockout in the 10th round in their WBO World Cruiserweight championship fight at Max Schmeling Halle, Berlin, Germany.

Prior to that, he had defeated Michael Hunter on April 8, 2017, by unanimous decision in their WBO World Cruiserweight championship fight at MGM National Harbor, Oxon Hill, United States.

Going into that contest, he had beaten Thabiso Mchunu on December 17, 2016, by knockout in the 9th round in their WBO World Cruiserweight championship fight at Forum, Inglewood.

Before that, he had won against Krzysztof Glowacki on September 17, 2016, by unanimous decision in their WBO World Cruiserweight championship fight at Ergo Arena, Gdansk, Poland.

He had beaten Pedro Rodriguez on December 12, 2015, by technical knockout in the 7th round at Sport Palace, Kiev, Ukraine.

Activity check

In terms of activity leading into the fight, Mairis Briedis had been fighting more than Oleksandr Usyk.

Going into this contest, Mairis Briedis had last fought 3 months and 28 days ago, while Oleksandr Usyk's last outing had been 4 months and 18 days ago.

Briedis' last 5 fights had come over a period of 1 year, 11 months and 6 days, which means he had been fighting approximately every 4 months and 21 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 38 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 7.6 rounds on average.

Usyk's last 5 fights had come over a period of 2 years, 1 month and 15 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 5 months and 4 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 50 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 10 rounds on average.

What time did Usyk vs Briedis start?

The fighters were expected to ringwalk at around 10:00 PM UTC at Arena Riga, Riga, Latvia, which was 5:00 PM EST or 2:00 PM PST on the West Coast of America, or 10:00 PM GMT in the UK.

Who broadcast Usyk vs Briedis?

Usyk vs Briedis was broadcast on ITV Box Office Free-to-Air in the UK.

What were the odds on Usyk vs Briedis?

Mairis Briedis was a 4/1 (+400) underdog going into the contest, while Oleksandr Usyk made his way into the ring at 17/100 (-590) with oddsmakers.