“It was like being with amateur boxers.”

The reason why Tyson Fury lost to Oleksandr Usyk is interesting.

Fury (34-1-1, 24 KOs) was knocked down late in the match by Usyk (22-0, 14 KOs) and lost a split decision in a heavyweight boxing bout at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh in May. Usyk became the first unbeaten heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis in 1999.

Fury thought he did enough to win the bout, feeling that “The Gypsy King” was beating Usyk with ease until his knockdown in the ninth round, and even calling him an easy opponent.

“The Usyk fight was a lot easier than I thought it would be. A lot easier,” Fury said on his Furocity podcast. “Everyone was saying, 'He's a hard guy to hit,' and I just crushed him with three- or four-punch combinations and had a laugh. My problem in that fight is I was probably having too much fun. Maybe it was too easy. Sometimes it was too easy.”

“I was with some local amateur boxers, just having fun and messing around. I paid the price in the worst way possible, losing 10-8 in the ninth round. This is what happens when you have too much fun. They always tell me you shouldn't mix work and play, but I've always given them the finger and now it's coming back to haunt me.”

Fury will get the chance to leave no doubt when he faces Usyk again on December 21 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

“I can't win by decision so I have to beat him. It's a shame that I have to knock him out because it's hard enough to win the fight,” Fury said. “But I'm confident and I'm looking forward to the challenge.”