AJ acknowledges Ukrainian’s strength
Former world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua believes that the Ukrainian boxer, holder of the WBC, IBO, WBA and WBO belts Alexander Usyk will manage to win the second fight with the former WBC world champion Tyson Fury.
“I said Usyk would win. I’ve been saying that since 2023. I’m sure Fury is a good fighter, but there are levels in boxing. Cruiser almost knocked him out, almost knocked Fury out.”
“We need to learn from these situations, from the situation with Fury. I don’t think he underestimated him, but he said that Usik is a middleweight, this and that. It just showed everyone that you should never play around or humiliate someone. You have to give credit when it’s deserved.”
“Otherwise you can go out there thinking you’re going to forget someone, and the next minute in the fight everything can change exactly the opposite. Usyk had a good performance. Fury should give him credit next time and maybe he’ll do better.”
“I think Fury is a good fighter and you saw some good moments. I just don’t think he’s capable of beating Usyk. It’s not that I don’t appreciate Fury. He’s good, he brought himself to this position. I just don’t think he’s better than Usyk.”
Let us recall that on the night of May 19, Usyk inflicted the first defeat of his professional career on Tyson Fury in a fight that took place at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia). The victory was awarded to the Ukrainian by a split decision of the judges: 115-112, 113-114 and 114-113.
Alexander became the first absolute heavyweight champion in the four-belt era. In the heavyweight division, the last time the absolute title was held was by Lennox Lewis in 1999, but back then three titles were enough to win the title.
Usyk subsequently issued a statement in which he announced that he would give the IBF belt to the winner of the British derby between his two former opponents in the ring – Daniel Dubois and Anthony Joshua.. Thus, Alexander lost the status of absolute world heavyweight champion, which he had held for more than a month.
Usyk and Fury have reached an agreement for a rematch. The “Gypsy King” has officially activated the rematch option. The second fight between Alexander and Tyson will take place on December 21, 2024, in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia). WBC President Mauricio Sulaiman said he would seek the introduction of video replays in this fight.
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.
