The Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk heavyweight title bout will be held in Saudi Arabia on February 17, and while many thought it wouldn't go so well, both fighters are now working up a sweat in their respective training camps in hopes of becoming the undisputed dominant powerhouse in their divisions in more than 20 years.
At present, the outside world is still slightly optimistic about Fury, believing that he has the strength and physical advantage, but some people think that Usyk can have the last laugh with his superb skills.
Once upon a time, Fury was a crafty technical fighter, but since apprenticed to Jawan Hill Stuward, he's become an aggressive and aggressive puncher, and Fury's change may or may not work for Usyk.
This week, British heavyweight Dave Allen talked about the Fury vs Usyk fight, Allen has a special identity, that is, he once served as Usyk's sparring partner, so he knows the other party very well. A few years ago, Usyk was driven into chaos when facing Derrick Chesola, who is known for his strong attack, so that many people felt that if they wanted to deal with Usyk, they must focus on strong attacks and overwhelm the opponent, so that they could have any hope of victory, and called on Fury to turn on the strong attack mode in the confrontation with Usyk. However, Allen doesn't think so, reminding Fury that it would be unwise to overpower Usyk with just offense.
Allen recalls the experience of fighting Usyk, saying: "I spent a lot of time trying to put pressure on him, but unfortunately it didn't work, Usyk is a master at dealing with this kind of thing. People have been treating him like this for years, but I think to beat Usyk and not attack, you need to do a lot of feints so that it works. Usyk's body is not the strongest, nor is he the biggest fighter, his mind is the key to Usyk's victory, and I believe Fury is the only one who can beat Usyk in the fight. ”
Allen suggested that Fury should not press up and attack Usyk like he did in the rematch and trilogy against Wilder, but should make full use of his physique, skill and intelligence to maneuver with his opponent, and Allen believes that Fury should return to the style and strategy of 2015.
Allen said: "If I were Fury's coach, I would ask him to implement the strategy in the battle with Klitschko Jr., and a lot of people may disagree with me, but I wouldn't advise anyone to storm Usyk. ”
So how do you beat Usyk? Allen made a move to Fury: "You've been very ferocious in the last few fights and you've given your opponent more chances, but when you're playing against someone with skill and speed, you have to be careful and play a little bit more tricks after the opening, and if Usyk slows down, then Fury's advantage will be revealed." ”
Now, Fury has hired 19-year-old heavyweight rising star Moshe Ituma as a sparring partner to emulate Usyk's style. Iduma is a left-hander who has won all seven of his professional fights and lost five knockouts, so it's unclear if he can help Furi?
Briton Joe Joyce, who lost to "Big Bang" Zhang Zhilei last year, also predicted the battle between Fury and Usyk, but unlike Allen, Joyce commented on the competition in a "and mud" way, saying: "Fury is taller and has a longer range, but Usyk attacks more frequently and has a very skillful left-handed style, it is a 50-50 battle, I'm not sure who will win, but there will definitely be a rematch." ”