This is what WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury (34-0-1, 24 KOs) and WBO/IBF/WBA heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk (21-0, 14 KOs) had to say at Wednesday’s media workout, three days before all the belts will be at stake on PPV from the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Tyson Fury: “I’m on top of the world, baby! Who wouldn’t be enjoying it? I’m in the great Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. This is the main event. It is the undisputed heavyweight championship of the world…we’re looking forward to putting on a fantastic show for the world to watch.”
Oleksandr Usyk: “I feel good. Each event brings with it a new experience. It’s always a wonderful, great, and new experience for the team. I don’t have a final message for him. I will save it for Saturday.”
Count how many times Fury will hold Usyk in the fight once they get in on the inside. Total BS. The referees do nothing to deter such a lame tactic to prevent getting hit. Fury never loses any points for holding. Ever.
I’m expecting Fury to try that and leaning on him too, but I’m also expecting Usyk to slide away and hit him in the head six times each time he tries it!
@Scooby: Fury boxed in the first Wilder fight and that did not work That well for him. Brawling, holding, even dirty fighting worked much better for Fury in the second and third Wilder fight. But brawling was also a much bigger risk kinda fight. And against Usyk surely boxing won’t work well for Fury, he will get outsmarted. So recon dirty fighting it is going to be for Fury.
Scoob – Holding in heavyweights has long been accepted, unsure why, maybe because they are just big guys needing a rest, but the refs have always just broken them up.
Go back and watch old heavyweight fights.
Muhammad Ali never lost points for holding or using his weight to lean on opponents either. Once he got older he did it all the time.
– Back in the day, Mills Lane used to slap away the hand that the boxer was holding with.
– Mills didn’t care if they were heavyweights or not. There was no holding on his watch…..
But basic holding isn’t against the rules. It is excessive holding that gets warnings and points deductions.
Holding with a clinch is acceptable. Always has been. Grabbing or clinging is against the rules.
This fight is scheduled to be for all the bogus belts, but the less boxing needed on top of all the mess created for the WBA, WBC, WBO, and IBF is a new sanctioning entity, and the utterly wothless IBO is finding a sneaky way to be present in some big events; hopefully they will be ignored. I saw a clown carrying a cheap IBO belt when Kambosos entered the ring, without a reason because it was a fight for the vacant IBF lightweight title. Now it is being mentioned in the Usyk vs. Fury fight. What a shame!!
This fight is a pickem with the oddsmakers. I really can’t pick a winner. Fury is so unpredictable. Usyk always shows up. Nobody wants to see Usyk-Joshua again, but Fury-Joshua would generate hundreds of millions. I don’t see Usyk winning on the cards if it’s close. I don’t think the size difference is that big of a deal. Usyk is a true master boxer.I could see him pitching a shutout if the Fury that fought Ngannu or Walin shows up. I think Tyson looks like he’s in shape and his head is on straight for this fight. I’m gonna go with my gut and say Fury by close and disputed UD12.
I’m gettin excited!
Cover yourself!!!
Not seeing this as a David and Goliath fight. Usyk is a big solid guy. He might be that perfect combination of size, speed and smarts. Haven’t been supremely impressed with me at heavyweight though. And Fury….well who knows. His awkward sloppy octopus style works for him.
It’s funny that Usyk is considered small and George Foreman was considered huge. The tale of the tape shows them nearly identical in size.
Go Oleksandr Usyk, go !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
“I’m on top of the world, baby!” – the Humpty Dumpty on stilts who moves and punches like a puppet on a string, with his usual cringe BS. I’ll be glad when the sport moves on from this pathetic clown.
Fury doesn’t have the power to knock out Usyk. He doesn’t have the boxing ability to hit Usyk with a punch Usyk never saw coming. Usyk is also far more agile and mobile on his feet, and a far better boxer. Fury is going to try to rely on his height advantage, since that’s all he has. Arms flailing away, grabbing, holding, reaching, flickering, arm punching – puppet on a string. He will get hit, and hit often. I say Usyk wins by decision.
Usyk by DQ. Fury will get himself disqualified. Holding and hitting, low blows, hitting after bell,….
I think there are going to be a lot of disappointed Usyk fans after this fight. In my opinion Fury will win this with surprising ease. Styles makes fights and Furys style is awful for Usyk. Usyk will have his moments but he has not looked great against heavies and has shown almost no heavyweight power. Chisoras power definitely shook him up and Joshua, who is no boxer, marked up his face quite a bit in the first fight. Lets face it, Dubois knocked him out with a legit body shot and was robbed. Fury has a relentless engine, Usyk will not be able to wear him down but Furys style will wear down Usyk round by round.
Yeah, that’s the way I see it also.
Not a fan of either guy, the sooner Fury retires the better IMO.
So he should retire because you are not a fan?
Do you REALLY need me to explain what I wrote?
He’s 6’9″ and sits on top of the heavy weight division.
Do you know why the lighter weight division are much more competitive, probably not.
Because there are MANY fighters in that demographic pool.
There’s not too many 6”9″ boxers are there?
I have followed boxing religiously for over 45 years. I have traveled the world to see fights and have learned a fair amount about the sport along the way i.e. I know a dumb boxing comment when I read one.
Usyk and his team are well aware of Fury’s dirty tactics, and for sure, Usyk has a game plan and a vast array of skills to execute. I am envisioning a boring fight in the first half, but once Fury begins to fade and gets tired, then the fight will become interesting with Usyk sweeping rounds en route to a dominant win.
I see that too
Well, this fight needs to be. Let’s not forget that. Both men need this victory, let’s hope that is enough to make a real entertaining heavyweight fight.
Let’s go champs!
The key to this fight will be Usyk not getting drawn in to any engagement where Fury can hold him, lean on him, and catch him on the break. Usyk is probably the only heavyweight boxer alive who has the footwork and movement to ensure this never happens. Lateral movement to get out of range every time Fury comes in to hold. Fury *has* to hold Usyk to drain his strength, and to rest. Also, apart from the Dylian uppercut KO, which was a fluke at center-ring, Fury has a single signature go-to move: get his man against the ropes, then throw a STRAIGHT 1-2 combo. Straight left is HUGE, because of Fury’s reach and weight. While his opponent is trying to avoid the straight left, he quickly follows it with a straight right, which is like being hit with the end of a tree. I believe Usyk is intelligent enough to know all this, and can pitch an agile shut-out on an increasingly frustrated and desperate Fury. But Usyk also appears to be vulnerable to a body shot…
The Brits again showed their class(lack of it), they and their supporters are like a bunch of soccer hooligans. Fury looked scared and nervous, i see this as a 50/50 fight.