The much anticipated undisputed heavyweight title bout between Tyson ‘Gypsy King’ Fury and Oleksandr Usyk has been postponed.

The fight, “Ring of fire,” earlier scheduled to be held on February 17 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, was postponed due to a cut Fury sustained while sparring,” Queensberry, UK’s leading boxing promoter, announced in a statement on Friday, posting a photo of Fury’s cut.

“The cut, which opened above Fury’s right eye, required urgent medical attention and significant stitching and will obviously require a period of recovery, scuppering any possibility of the fight with Usyk taking place on 17th February in Saudi Arabia,” the statement reads in part.

On his official Instagram page, Fury expressed disappointment in the postponement due to the cut he sustained while sparring, saying a new date for the fight will be announced once he heals.

 “I am absolutely devastated after preparing for this fight for so long and being in such superb condition. I feel bad for everyone involved in this huge event, and I will work diligently towards the rescheduled date once the eye has healed,” Fury said.

He added, “I can only apologise to everyone affected, including my own team, Team Usyk, the undercard fighters, partners, and fans, as well as our hosts and my friends in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.”

Reacting to Fury’s Instagram post, Usyk’s promoter, Alex Krassyuk, said, “Wishing you soonest recovery. God sent you a sign. Think of retirement, brother.”

The postponed undisputed heavyweight fight is coming two decades after British boxer Lennox Lewis defeated Evander Holyfield to be the undisputed heavyweight champion in 1999, winning the WBA, WBC, and IBF titles.

The winner of the fight, when it eventually holds, will be the first undisputed heavyweight champion since Lewis won it in 1999.

Fury, 35, a Brit, presently holds the World Boxing Council (WBC) world champion, while Usyk, 36, a Ukrainian, holds the World Boxing Association (WBA), World Boxing Organisation (WBO), International Boxing Federation (IBF) and International Boxing Organisation (IBO) belts. 

In September, Fury and Usyk put pen to paper for an undisputed heavyweight fight first scheduled for December 23 in Saudi Arabia. But after Fury’s fight with Francis Ngannou last October, in which he sustained a cut on the forehead and had a welt under one of his eyes, a new date was scheduled for February this year. 

Both men are coming into the fight with sterling career records. Since he became professional in 2008, Fury has remained unbeaten, winning 33 fights and drawing just one. Twenty-four of Fury’s victories were via knockout.

Similarly, Usyk has remained unbeaten in all 21 fights in his professional career, winning 14 via knockout.