Recently, Usyk and Fury's upcoming heavyweight boxing champion unification battle has sparked a lot of discussion in the boxing field. Because in the history of heavyweight boxing, there has never been a boxing champion who unified the four major boxing organizations! Even the heaviest boxing champions in boxing history, such as Muhammad Ali, Mike Tyson, Lennox Lewis, and Holyfield, have not reached this unprecedented honor!
To that end, boxing legend and four-division World Champion Roy Jones Jr. has dedicated an impactful look at an upcoming heavyweight showdown.
Assessing the upcoming contest, Jones expressed concern about Usyk's strength. He hinted that given that Usyk only weighed 221 pounds against Daniel Dubois in his most recent fight, and that he faced the long-handed and heavy-weight gypsy king Tyson Fury (2.06 meters tall and weighing more than 270 pounds), Usyk may need to have extraordinary strength to transform if he wants to shake this "giant body". To borrow an exaggerated metaphor, he joked that Usyk would hardly have had an advantage in this confrontation with a huge disparity of power if he didn't have the explosive power conversion of the "Hulk".
However, some boxing enthusiasts and industry observers disagree. They believe that although Fury poses a threat with his massive stature and overwhelming power, Usyk's strength lies in his unique technology and dynamic characteristics. Boxing critics such as Charles Buren have highlighted Usyk's technical prowess and speed to be overlooked, with his speed, intelligence and agility outperforming Fury, elements that make him more agile and unpredictable in the ring.
At this point in his boxing career, Bren further dissected that Fury's fighting style is more of a "grappling" style that mixes grappling and onslaught, rather than relying solely on single-shot knockouts. While Fury has shown some destructiveness in the grappling, he's not your typical heavy gunner, and his style of play may not have the desired effect against an opponent like Usyk who is good at loaming and countering quickly.
The core of this contest between Fury and Usyk is the battle for control of the whole court and the effective implementation of their respective styles. Essentially, it's going to be a high-level tactical battle around power suppression and technical dodging, as well as a direct dialogue between two very different boxing philosophies. In order to win this tough fight, both fighters will need to make the most of their strengths and effectively dampen each other's attacks, and the key to this is to be able to accurately capture and capitalize on those fleeting opportunities in practice.
In summary, it will not be easy for Fury to successfully suppress and end Usyk, and similarly, Usyk will face a serious challenge if he wants to overthrow Fury's dominance. The two sides should minimize or improve their respective defects and shortcomings as much as possible through refined training and technical adjustment under normal competitive conditions, so as to find a chance to win in the contest with close strength. After all, at the top level of boxing, even the tiniest detail can turn into a fatal blow at a crucial moment.
Personally, Usyk will undoubtedly take more risk in this match, as he can only rely on superb technique and nimble dodging to match point strikes on the premise that his heavy punches can't inflict heavy damage on Furi. Once Fury catches the loophole, it is likely that the game will end in an instant! Therefore, this match can be said to be a copy of Zhang Zhilei playing Parker, if he plays a full 12 rounds, with Usyk's fast hitting frequency and superb dodge skills, there is a very high probability of winning in terms of points! Tyson Fury must hit Usyk hard before the end of the match, and even finish to have any hope of winning!
Whoever emerges victorious will undoubtedly go down in history as the outcome of the fight, and the answer to how the two champions will shape this history will be revealed on May 18 on the night of boxing in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. At that time, we will witness not only the collision of strength and skill, but also how the two masters of boxing interpret the boxing philosophy of "survival of the fittest".