Via Craig Daly: Athlete Frank Warren believes his two heavyweights, Tyson Fury and Joe Joyce, will beat IBF, WBA & WBO champion Oleksandr Usyk thanks to his size, punching ability and high work rate.
That said, Joyce lost to Usyk a decade ago when the two fought in the world boxing series in a five-round bout. However, that was a long time ago, and Joyce was a lot lighter than it is now.
Differences in speed and mobility between devices remain, as Usyk is much faster and more maneuverable.
Last weekend, Usyk (20-0, 13 KOs) defeated Anthony Joshua in a rematch in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The win for Usyk was his second victory over Joshua, whose career is now on the brink of failure after a decade of playing professionally.
Usyk said he now wants Fury to win the WBC, and if he can’t get that fight, he may end up with the sport. With Fury expecting a king’s ransom for the undisputed clash with Usyk, it remains to be seen whether that fight can be made.
Obviously not a good sign that Fury is openly telling promoters to open their checkbooks for him.
“I watched it, and I felt like I liked Usyk. I like what he did, but I feel a really heavy weight – I’m talking about a heavyweight who already has good beard, people with good work rate [would beat him]”Warren said to Sports sky.
It’s unclear if Joyce or Fury are physically fit to beat Usyk at this point in their careers.
Both guys have gained a lot of weight in recent years and are in the 260+ lb region, which could prove to be too heavy for them to beat a smaller, fast heavyweight and as mobile as Usyk. He threw more than 700 punches in his win over Joshua last weekend, and that’s a number Joyce & Fury can’t match due to their size.
“Joe, for example, he has a good work rate, a very good cleft chin,” says Warren. “I think he gives him a lot of problems and I think Tyson gives him big problems too. I thought they would be too big and too much ammo for him. “
