The Gypsy King appeared confident he had done enough but the scorecards soon confirmed that Usyk, who broke down in tears in the ring, was the winner.

His legacy at the top of the sport has been cemented and Usyk, days after his triumph, also stands tall at the summit of the revised pound-for-pound rankings.

Oleksandr Usyk has been named as Ring Magazine’s new pound-for-pound king

Usyk downed Tyson Fury to become boxing’s first four-belt undisputed heavyweight champion

On a legacy-defining night in Saudi Arabia, Usyk triumphed via a split-decision points victory

Usyk has beaten Naoya Inoue, the holder of several world championships in four weight classes and previous leader of the prestigious list, to first place.

The fearsome Terence Crawford, previously second behind Inoue, has now been bumped down into third place while Canelo Alvarez is fourth.

Artur Beterbiev is fifth with Dmitry Bivol and Errol Spence sixth and seventh respectively. Gervonta Davis, Jesse Rodriguez and Junto Nakatani round off the list.

Fury, meanwhile, has once again missed out on the top 10. The last time the Gypsy King made the cut was November 2021, when he finished in tenth place.

Usyk is the first boxer in 24 years to be the sport’s sole heavyweight champion.

Japan’s Naoya Inoue is second on the list with Usyk jumping into first place after beating Fury

Terence Crawford, previously second behind Inoue, is now third on the prestigious list

The Gypsy King missed out on the top 10 again and last made the cut back in November 2021

Ring Magazine’s top 10 pound-for-pound fighters

1. Oleksandr Usyk

2. Naoya Inoue

3. Terence Crawford

4. Canelo Alvarez

5. Artur Beterbiev

6. Dmitry Bivol

7. Errol Spence

8. Gervonta Davis

9. Jesse Rodriguez

10. Junto Nakatani

‘Thank you so much to my team. It’s a big opportunity for my family, for me, for my country. It’s a great time, it’s a great day,’ Usyk said. ‘I am ready for a rematch.’

Fury, beaten for the first time in his 16-year professional career, insisted he had done enough to win and believes Usyk garnered sympathy due to the war in Ukraine.

‘I believe he won a few of the rounds, but I won the majority,’ Fury said in the ring.

‘His country is at war, so people are siding with the country at war. Make no mistake, I won that fight in my opinion.’

He added: ‘It was one of the daftest decisions in boxing. I’ll be back.’

Ring Magazine introduced their pound-for-pound rankings in 1989.