Via Barry Holbrook: Ricky Hatton is concerned about Tyson Fury’s ability to execute Dillian Whyte’s shots should he be hit at full force by him on April 23. Fury has not indicated that he plans to box Whyte, and has not It’s clear if he can return to his old defensive fighting style.
The weight Fury has carried over the past two years for his fights with Wilder won’t be easy for him to lose, and he probably won’t be trying to lose weight.
Hatton believes Fury will be in trouble if he decides to have an old-fashioned bout with Whyte (28-2, 19 KOs) as we’ve seen him do in his last four fights.
Fury was knocked down twice by Deontay Wilder in his final fight and received some big right-hand bombs during that contest. In the end, what ultimately saved Fury was Wilder exhaling after four rounds, losing a lot of breath on his shots since that point.
The once crafty Fury (31-0-1, 22 KOs) has recently turned into a simple brawler and he’s shown a willingness to go all out with his opponents.
Hatton: Fury must be more careful
It’s a good sign that Fury has lost weight, looks slimmer and used the movement to train for his April 23 fight with Whyte.
“I think Tyson might have to go back to his old Tyson to fight Dillian,” Ricky Hatton told Sports boxing BT. “He didn’t need me to tell him to do it; In terms of speed, ability, and movement, Tyson outperforms Dillian by head and shoulders.
“The only chance Dillian has is if he watches Tyson, and the more Tyson stands there and trades like he did in one of his last two fights, the more chances he has for Dillian. .
“Dillian will hit you and put you out. I think if Dillian hit Tyson, I just wonder how long my ex can keep getting up a** from these heavy, heavy knockdowns.
“I think once [in first Deontay Wilder fight], he looked as if he was out. So he has to be a bit more sensitive in this next fight and pick his timing, especially early. Pick him up early but box him up, get rid of his pain first, and then put his feet straight down the house.
“I think so he has to be a little more careful and show Dillian the respect he deserves because he can hit, man. He has a good camp and excellent people mentoring him.
“I’m not saying he should run and run a mile to get rid of Dillian because Tyson has proven he can do it with people. But I just think he will give up all his advantages if he goes up against Dillian.
“I think Dillian likes a big toe, and he likes a slugfest. Tyson has a lot of other things, no disrespect to Dillian, but he has a lot of attributes at hand. He has the height, the reach, he can go south, he can go mainstream, he can stand back and box, move and use his defense and sit on the rope.
Tyson is physically exhausted
Since Sugarhill Steward took over as Fury’s coach in 2019, he is expected to suffer more punishment in some fights than he has suffered in his entire career.
It’s not that Fury accepted the punishment because he’s getting older, but clearly, he’s getting older.
The reason Fury gets hit more than he ever does is because Steward has turned him into a straight hitter, giving up his 6’9″ height so quickly and being willing to trade for a shot at close distance.
Fury would be better off if he got back to his pre-Steward style, but I don’t know if he can.
“To me, Tyson would be a fool to bring all those attributes up and go to war because that’s what Dillian likes,” Hatton said. “My whole month will be ruined if I go and perform and the fans get bored.
“Tyson wanted AJ, and he knew that if he took his eyes off the ball against Dillian, that fight would never happen. I think he will have the ball, he will know what is going on, and in the end he has to have the ball. It was a dangerous war, a great war.
“Remember that he burned the candles at both ends with his body. Not just what he did in the ring, but what he did off the ring,” Hatton said of Fury. “You wonder because it must have happened to my body.
“At some point, your body says, ‘I’ve had enough. I can’t do that anymore. You knocked me out in the ring and made me stay out of the ring. I only have a few battles left in me, and that’s what your body does.
“Certainly, with the fights he’s been through, Tyson will definitely come to that stage now. For me, as a friend, you’re going to want to see Tyson put on a great performance against Dillian, fight AJ and get out for me.
“Dillian has to do what he does best. He’s a great pressure fighter, he’s always face to face with you, and he’s got to try to pull on Tyson.
“The reason Tyson has been in a position to hit his back a few times, not just with Wilder, but a few times before, is because he can be manipulated,” Hatton said.
Whyte will try to drag Fury into a fight
There’s no doubt that Whyte will go all out, trying to force Fury into fights like the ones he used to get into in his recent fights with Deontay Wilder and Otto Wallin.
If Whyte can successfully woo Fury, he can wear him down and catch him with a big hit to score a knockout. Whyte may not even need to pressure Fury in a fight as his trainer SugarHill Steward will likely force him to fight aggressively using the Kronk Gym style he taught him. following a one-size-fits-all approach.
Unfortunately for Fury, Steward doesn’t seem to know any other style of training other than the Kronk Gym fighting methods he’s taught since he took over as his trainer in 2019.
“Dillian would be in training camp thinking, ‘If I have the right strategy, face him, knock him down enough, put enough pressure on him. In the end, I would attract him,” Hatton said.
“Dillian will think to himself, ‘Tyson won’t be able to help himself. He is a fighting man who will want to fight me. If I can draw him into that fight. ‘ I think that’s what’s going to be on Dillian’s mind.
“‘Tyson can be manipulated, and as long as I do things in the early rounds to entice him, I can get what I want.”
“Dillian packed the box in front of a large crowd. That would be the biggest crowd Dillian joined, but Dillian was a very consistent man.
“He is the No. 1 candidate [with the WBC] 2 and a half years outside, still waiting for their turn, still in the gym, still hungry; that just shows he’s a really determined person.
“He’s waited forever and a day to get his title, and now that he’s achieved it, I don’t think he’ll be found in neurology. I don’t think the crowd will leave him. I think Dillian would have been warm to it rather than crumbled,” Hatton said.
