The Ukrainian assessed the technical capabilities of the contenders for the undisputed heavyweight title
Ukrainian middleweight boxer Sergey Derevyanchenko gives slight preference to WBC title holder Tyson Fury in a fight with the WBA/WBO/IBF/IBO world champion Alexander Usik.
“I prefer Fury a little bit. Although I think that he lost in the previous fight against Francis Ngannou. This is my personal point of view. I think if he looks the same against Usik, then Alexander should pass him.”
“But we still have to give credit to Ngannou. He’s very big, very stocky, and has a very powerful punch.”
“Usyk has completely different strengths. He has strong footwork. He moves great. The question is how he’ll use them against Fury, given that he’s shorter and has a smaller reach.”
“If he works close and then tries to break the distance, then Fury can catch him with his long arms. Therefore, I still bet that Usik will maneuver more and use attack angles.”
“Fury has good defense. I call him “octopus”. He uses a lot of feints, and with his constant movements he can confuse his opponent. It will not be easy for Usyk to break through this defense.”
“It might be even more correct to say that the chances in this fight are 50/50. Both have their trump cards. Both have something they can use to win.”
The Usyk-Fury fight will officially take place on February 17. The title of absolute heavyweight champion will be at stake. The event will take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Usik fought his last fight on August 27 in Wroclaw, Poland. The Ukrainian knocked out Daniel Dubois in the 9th round and defended his championship titles.
Fury previously defeated Francis Ngannou via split decision. It was reported that the Briton received two cuts in a fight with the former UFC champion.
Source: Sportarena
I am Ashley Ortiz and I am a professional journalist working for Athletistic. My specialty is in sports journalism, particularly boxing. I have written articles for some of the most renowned publications on the subject, and my work has been featured across both print and digital media platforms.
