Ahead of the crucial heavyweight bout between Oleksandr Usyk and Anthony Joshua on Saturday, August 20, 2022, boxing coach Peter Fury said the Ukrainian is a natural-born fighter who has all the boxing qualities embedded in him.
Fury described Usyk as a proper fighter whose instincts and thoughts are overwhelmed with boxing.
According to the boxing coach, during an interview with Sky Sports, the heavyweight title holder, who defeated Anthony Joshua to claim three of the four heavyweight belts in September last year, is a quality operator.
“I’m not one of these to jump on the gravy train. I’ve always been impressed with Usyk, from a long time ago,” Fury admitted.
“I’ve always known Usyk was the real deal.
“He’s a good fighter, Usyk, talented and he’s a natural fighter as well. That’s the difference. That’s why he’s a quality operator.
“This guy can box in his sleep. He’s born, bred to fight, this Usyk. So he’s as real as it gets, he’s a proper fighter in my eyes,” the boxing coach added.
Joshua lost the fight against Usyk and immediately activated the clause for a rematch.
The British boxer, who defeated Wladimir Klitschko, is determined to reclaim his belts and had employed several trainers to prepare him adequately for the crucial fight in Saudi Arabia.
Fury believes that Joshua will come out with different tactics likewise Usyk who, according to the coach, knows what is coming.
“He should do, he’s got different trainers and I’m sure they’ll input a lot into it,” he said.
“But ultimately, when that bell goes as he raises his game and changes it, so will Usyk. Usyk will know what’s coming,” Usyk added.
The boxing coach, preempting Joshua’s tactics, explained that the British who turns 33 in October, will look to close the range in the rematch and this could have a repercussion.
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He spotted that Joshua must develop the right frame of mind before going into the match and recalled that the last time he entered the ring, he was pretty not sure what he wanted.
“Joshua could be a different fighter, let his hands go, close the range more and just think, ‘Right, let’s get stuck in,” Fury said.
“On the other hand, he could leave himself more vulnerable, more open and get caught. So again, it’s the way you see it.
“He said to somebody when he climbed in the ring [before the first fight], ‘How would you go about it?’ That’s hardly the right mentality going into anything,” the coach continued.
“So he was already looking at it [thinking,] ‘Jesus, I’ve got a mountain to climb here. This guy’s very good. What am I going to do?’ That’s a recipe for disaster.
“So I think he can get it together. I think it’ll be a harder fight this time. But he’s going to have to change a lot of things. Can he win it? Yeah, he can win it. He’s a big strong man. He’s dedicated. But again, you can overthink things and if he starts thinking about too many game plans, this and that and loads of other things, ‘I need to be
perfect, I need to get it absolutely right,’ I need this, I need that – he’ll fail.
“There’s a lot of hype around it, everybody’s looking forward to it, I’m looking forward to it. I think it’s going to be a phenomenal fight. Look, I wish both of them all the best. I don’t favour any. It’s a good fight and Usyk is a good fighter and if Joshua comes through, he’s proved himself. But it’s a tall order. I’d have to at this stage
slightly favour Usyk in it. But I wouldn’t be surprised if Joshua can come up with it and get the win,” he added.
Usyk, 35, in September, clinched the WBO, IBF, WBA belts to become the next heavyweight champion from Ukraine after the reign of Wladimir Klitschko.
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