Martin believes that the “Gypsy King” should work, not play in the ring
Congolese heavyweight boxer Martin Bakole made a prediction for the upcoming second confrontation between former WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury (34-1-1, 24 KOs) and current WBO/WBA/IBO/WBC heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk (22-0, 14 KOs).
“I was surprised that Usyk beat Fury. I was surprised not only by Usyk, but also by Tyson’s performance. He was playing around. He should have focused like he did in the rematch with Deontay Wilder. If he goes into the rematch with that mentality, I think he will stop Usyk the same way he stopped Deontay. The thing is, in the rematch with Wilder, we saw a different Tyson Fury – focused, coming out to win.”
“When you put your hands behind your back and don’t move, it shows you’re not focused. One round changed everything. One left hook changed everything. I want Fury to be 100% focused and not play around. Usyk is going to be 100% focused on winning the fight. So you have to be the same.”
On the night of May 19, Usyk inflicted Fury’s first defeat in his professional career in a fight that took place at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia). The Ukrainian was awarded the victory by a split decision of the judges: 115-112, 113-114 and 114-113.
Usyk 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.
Oleksandr is the second boxer in history after Evander Holyfield, who was the absolute world champion in cruiserweight and heavyweight. Also, the Ukrainian boxer became the third (after Terence Crawford and Naoya Inoue) in the era of four prestigious titles absolute champion in two weight categories.
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 champion in heavyweight, 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.
