World Championship Boxing returns Thanksgiving Saturday: Wladimir Klitschko vs. Tyson Fury

Wladimir Klitschko looks on during a press conference for his fight against Tyson Fury at Esprit-Arena on July 21, 2015 in Duesseldorf, Germany.

The world’s premier heavyweight returns to HBO for his second fight of the year in a fascinating Thanksgiving weekend matchup when WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING: WLADIMIR KLITSCHKO VS. TYSON FURY is seen SATURDAY, NOV. 28 at 4:45 p.m. (live ET/tape-delayed PT) from ESPRIT Arena in Dusseldorf, Germany. The HBO Sports team will call all the action, which will be available in HDTV, closed-captioned for the hearing-impaired and presented in Spanish on HBO Latino. The same day replay will air at 10:15 p.m. (ET/PT) and the prime time encore play will be paired with the exclusive replay of the middleweight super fight from Nov. 21 that featured Miguel Cotto and Canelo Alvarez as well as the thrilling super featherweight title fight between Takashi Muira and Francisco Vargas.

Other HBO playdates: Nov. 29 (9:00 a.m.) and 30 (11:15 p.m.)

HBO2 playdate: Nov. 29 (4:30 p.m.)

Boasting a collection of title belts, Wladimir Klitschko (64-3, 54 KOs) from Kiev, Ukraine, and now residing in Miami, takes on Tyson Fury (24-0, 18 KOs) of Wilmslow, Cheshire, UK in a world championship title fight that has the boxing world buzzing. Long dominant in the heavyweight division, three-time champ Klitschko won his first title belt in 2001. He has a sterling championship bout record of 25-2 and is on a 22-fight victory streak since his loss to Lamon Brewster in 2004. At one point, he and his now-retired brother, Vitali, held every major heavyweight championship belt between them.

The upcoming fight is the 39-year-old Klitschko’s 19th consecutive world heavyweight title defense and 21st HBO bout; he first appeared on the network in 2000, when he handled Monte Barrett with a seventh-round TKO.

Standing 6’9,” Tyson Fury is known as much for nonstop chatter as firepower in the ring. The 26-year-old hopes to spring the biggest divisional upset in a decade.

Following the afternoon telecast from the 50,000-seat venue in Dusseldorf, HBO Sports will replay the bout in prime time at 10:15 p.m. (ET/PT) followed by two tremendous fights from the Nov. 21 pay-per-view card at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas. HBO subscribers will be treated to the replay of the super featherweight title fight between Takashi Muira and Francisco Vargas and the middleweight collision between Miguel Cotto and Canelo Alvarez. Vargas’ incredible 9th round comeback victory generated adjectives from the boxing media that included: “Stunning.” “Brutal.” “Startling.” “Thriller.” The Cotto-Alvarez bout was one of the year’s most intriguing and high profile matchups and Canelo emerged as the decisive winner.

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All HBO boxing events are presented in HDTV. HBO viewers must have access to the HBO HDTV channel to watch HBO programming in high definition.

The executive producer of WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING is Rick Bernstein; producer, Dave Harmon; director, Johnathan Evans.