In 20 days' time, the highly anticipated heavyweight boxing champion unification bout - Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk - will kick off in Saudi Arabia, who will win this fight? Thompson, nicknamed "Trouble," admits that he won't be surprised by what happens.
The 30-year-old Thompson, who has fought with Fury and Usyk many times, knows each other very well and has also watched their training up close.
Thompson, from Manchester, England, is a heavy gunner, who challenged IBF welterweight champion Jay Opetaya last year, and an important reason why he got such an opportunity is that he had fought with Fury and Usyk, which impressed the organizers, but unfortunately due to lack of experience, Thompson only lasted 4 rounds in the confrontation with Opetaya, and now has a professional record of 15-1 and 12 knockouts.
First, Thompson recalls being offered to be Usyk's sparring partner, saying, "I got a phone call asking if I would like to fight Usyk, and I said yes without even thinking about it, because it's an experience of my life." ”
Later, Thompson traveled to Ukraine alone to meet with Usyk, and he joked that the experience was even more impressive than the actual combat. "At first, I stayed in the center of Kyiv, and then I went to a deserted place in the countryside, where there were three huts, very secluded, a really mysterious place, where there was a secret room, and there was a ring, and the ring was small, so it got interesting," Thompson said. ”
Thompson detailed the process of the fight against Usyk, saying: "I helped Usyk prepare for the fight against Murat Gasiev, and for the first time we had two rounds of fighting, I did what I had to do, trying not to get hit. At the time, there were four sparring partners there – light heavyweight, welterweight – heavyweight – superheavyweight – all battling Usyk. ”
Thompson continued: "Usyk would fight the light heavyweight for three rounds, fight me for three rounds, fight the heavyweight for three rounds, fight the super-heavyweight for three rounds, and finally Usyk would fight everyone for four rounds. ”
Thompson had this to say about Usyk: "He's an extraordinary fighter, an exceptional athlete, always doing his own thing, and the content he posts on social media is basically all about work. Usyk is a joker, but once he steps into the ring, he becomes very active, but at the same time very calm and intelligent, and his style of play is always realistic, he doesn't really get involved in any noise, and he is a very special fighter. ”
Thompson's partnership with Fury has lasted longer than Usyk, and he served as Fury's sparring partner twice in 2020-2021, helping to prepare for the rematch and trilogy bout with Deontay Wilder.
"Fury is also very special, when you're in the same training camp, he's going to treat you like one of his own," Thompson said. As a boxing partner, Fury did a lot for us, really good, he also made sure that we had a car which would be very convenient, while always caring about our lives, making sure there was enough money to spend and even allowing his coach to guide us. ”
Thompson was full of praise for Fury's style, saying, "Fury's movements, speed, reflexes are not equal to his huge physique, and that's what makes him special." Fury's feet move very fast, I think it's second to none in the heavyweight division, and that's why people think that Fury and Usyk have a lot of similarities, the two are really very close, both are very smart, relaxed, composed, and they both have a lot of boxing intelligence. ”
Who will win the big battle on May 18? Thompson made a prediction: "If Fury wants you to do something, he can do it, that's Fury's magic, there is a way to everything, and again, he's very adaptable." Usyk is a tactician and a master of technique, but for Fury, no matter what is in front of him, he can adapt and come up with some way to win, so I'm bullish on Fury. ”