Usyk v Fury 2: AI fourth judge to be trialled in Oleksandr Usyk v Tyson Fury heavyweight rematch in Riyadh

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Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury's unified heavyweight clash in Riyadh on Saturday, live on TNT Sports Box Office, will feature a "groundbreaking experiment". A fourth judge powered by artificial intelligence will score the fight, alongside the three usual judges, for the first time ever. Turki Alalshikh confirmed that the 'judge' will not impact the official results.

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Video credit: TNT Sports

The hotly-anticipated rematch between Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury in Riyadh, live on TNT Sports Box Office, will trial a fourth 'judge' powered by artificial intelligence (AI), alongside the three usual judges.

Turki Alalshikh, chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority, announced the innovation in a post on X, and confirmed that it "won’t impact the official results".

"For the first time ever, an AI-powered judge will monitor the fight," he wrote.

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"Free from bias and human error brought to you by The Ring. This groundbreaking experiment, which won’t impact the official results, debuts during the biggest fight of the century."

The use of an AI judge is Alalshikh's first use of The Ring Magazine branding since he purchased the publication from Oscar De La Hoya in November.

The magazine has been a staple of boxing since its foundation in 1922.

Boxing has long been affected by controversial judging decisions. If fully implemented, the introduction of AI judges could have significant ramifications for the sport.

Alalshikh has not revealed which AI firm will develop and operate the judge that will be used in Usyk v Fury 2, nor if the AI scores will be revealed round-by-round or kept a secret until the end of the main event.

The development comes after a recent statement from UFC head Dana White, who announced that he plans to use AI to form the UFC’s official rankings and even reached out to Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg.

Fury and Usyk will lock horns once again on December 21 for unified heavyweight glory.

Usyk claimed undisputed status after adding Fury’s WBC crown to his WBC, WBO and IBF gold when he beat the Brit by split decision in May. The Cat has since had to vacate the IBF strap.

It was Fury's first defeat of his professional career, and he has vowed to "destroy" the Ukrainian in Saturday's rematch.

"The mission has never been undisputed. It’s never been my mission. It’s been other people’s missions," Fury told TNT Sports.

"My mission is to smash this f***er's face right in on Saturday night. There’s no chance he can beat me. None."

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Video credit: TNT Sports

How to watch Usyk v Fury 2

discovery+ - TNT Sports Box Office events are now available to purchase and watch in the discovery+ app – on smart TVs, computer or mobile device, viewers wanting to watch the fight should visit https://www.discoveryplus.com/gb/ppv-purchases and follow instructions to register and then purchase the event.

EE TV - Customers can purchase the event via their STB on channel 494.

Virgin Media TV - Customers with a TiVo and/or V6 set-top-box should visit the On-Demand section and choose Live Events; customers with a Virgin TV 360 and/or Stream set-top-box should go to the Pay Per View events rail.

Prime Video - Customers do not need to have a Prime or discovery+ subscription to access this event. You can find live and upcoming PPV events in the "Live and upcoming events" row on the Prime Video homepage and sports page, or by searching for a specific event title.

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